


Safe Haven's Angel B1: Origins

by Itshauntedtoon3



Category: Hazbin Hotel (Web Series), Zoophobia (Webcomic)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Gen, M/M, Multi, OCs - Freeform, Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-18
Updated: 2020-05-22
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:34:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 47
Words: 48,111
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24246583
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Itshauntedtoon3/pseuds/Itshauntedtoon3
Summary: (Any Characters that are Vivziepop's and not my ocs aren't mine and rightfully belong to her.)Mirage is defeated. Families torn apart forever or brought closer together.....As years pass...Safe Haven is restored to it's natural peaceful state.....but what lies underneath is anything but peace. When a sudden illness is spread that puts its victims into a coma, people start looking for a miracle.......But not the kind they were expecting.An angel with no powers is suddenly discovered. Some are demanding her to do something while others blame her for the sudden outbreak.Follow Juliet as she dodges hunters, mobsters, and anyone else that wishes to use her powers. And what does the angel Adina know about her past.....A higher power is trying to bend Safe Haven to their rules.......What about her mate?The only safe haven for this angel just might be Hell.
Relationships: OC x Cannon, all kinds
Kudos: 2





	1. Ch 1 Illness Comes Forth

-Takes place 5 days prior to chapter 2-  
It was a silent night within the building as the cold air outside caused frost to appear along the windows.  
It was not a good night for it's residents.  
Pale blue eyes watched from across the hallway. They stared down the hall at one room in particular. A small bedroom on the right side.  
In there was the mother of those eyes. Sick. possibly dying.  
The owner of those eyes released an angry hiss. He felt so useless. Not being able to do ANYTHING while his mother suffered was making him really irritated.  
"Is Aunty Solstice ok?"  
His eyes darted down.  
A little girl stared up at him. A teddy clutched in her arms and her other hand clutching his pants. Her yellow eyes wide.  
"I don't know. The doctor hasn't come out of Mother's room yet......Neither has Father." He looked back to the room.  
"Oh." She looked to where he was staring at."......Is Uncle Castello gonna cry again?"  
"..........Since when has father ever cried?," he asked not looking at her.  
"Last night in his office."  
"......What were you doing in Father's office?" He gave her a side glance.  
"I wanted Mommy to read me a bedtime story. I found her with Uncle Castello and he was crying and shouting and throwing things.....It was scary."  
"Hmm." he'd seen his father angry before. But crying? Castello was many thing and did many things. But never ounce has he seen his father cry.  
The sound of a door opening got both of their attention as they looked up the hallway. The door to the room they were staring at opened and out stepped an older human. His father right behind him. They said a few things to each other before his father shook hands with the doctor.  
The doctor walked down the hall, giving them a pitiful look as he walked past.  
"Winter."  
His head snapped back around. His father made a come hither motion. He slowly made his way over, little cousin still holding on to his pants leg.  
He stopped when close enough. They both said nothing until he glanced at his niece.  
".......Bow, go find your mother and tell her I want to see her in my office immediately."  
"But, Aunty Solstice-"  
"Is none of your concern. Now, go find Salem."  
She opened her mouth to protest, but was interrupted.  
"Bow. Go find Aunt Salem. This doesn't concern you."  
The child glanced between her uncle and cousin. Both gave her the same blank look. She pouted, before saying "You're mean" and taking off down the hall. They watched her go.  
"......Winter.''  
He faced his father....and his eyes widened a bit.  
The dark circles under his eyes told of many countless nights of stress and sleep deprive. The look he gave was a mixture of frustration and something he couldn't quite place. Worry? Maybe pain?  
"I've decided it's best to move your mother to the hospital.......She's.....She's not better."  
"...........What's her condition?"  
He gave a long sigh. "Not good. She's having trouble keeping awake and waking up in general."  
"........What's happening to her?"  
"She wouldn't be like this if I knew. That's why I'm having her moved where she can receive better medical treatment."  
"......." He glanced over at the room."........May I see her?"  
"Yes, but make it quick. She needs rest.....and I wish to speak with her before Salem gets here."  
He nodded before turning to the room.  
The room was dark and silent except for the clock on the wall. The figure on the bed was turned away from him, but slightly tilted her head when she heard him walk in.  
"Mother?"  
Her ear twitched and fully turned to him. A smile on her face.  
"Hi, Sweetie," she said in a weak voice. She slowly held out her arm to him.  
Walking in, he took her hand and crouched by the bedside. "Hello, Mother."  
"Hi, Baby." She smiled at him.  
"How do you feel?"  
"Fine. Just really tired. How's school?"  
"Still a prison. But, I do get by."  
"That's good. I hope your grades aren't slipping."  
"No. Zoey's been tutoring me and stuff. I'm more concerned about the state you and Father are in." he began to unconsciously rub her knuckles.  
"He's been stressing himself out. Hasn't he?"  
"Bow found him screaming and crying last night."  
She gave a frown before asking, "It's that bad,huh?"  
"Worse. Mr. Marx has been doing most of Father's work around the studio and Aunt Salem has been cracking down on our rivals."  
"Poor them. They must be under so much stress."  
"Yes. Very much........You're not the first one to get this illness."  
"Oh, really?"  
''A whole school shut down last week because most of the students went into a coma from the blasted virus."  
"........That's bad."  
"Yes......Father's moving you to the hospital tomorrow. He says there would be better doctors to care for you."  
"I heard.....Maybe I'll get better there."  
He didn't even get a chance to reply.  
"Winter."  
His head whipped around while his mother tilted her head towards the door. His father stared at him from the doorway with his Aunt Salem right behind him. He nodded his head behind him as a signal to leave.  
Turning back to his mother, he leaned over to kiss her forehead before silently getting up and obeying his father's command.  
Walking past him, he heard his father say:  
"Keep your cousins entertained while we speak. And don't let anyone interrupt us."  
"Yes, Father."  
................................................................................................................................................................................  
The cold night air chilled his skin to the bone. But he didn't show it as he trudged to his destination.  
It was quite common for him to run out and do certain 'work' for the figure he was meeting with. And speaking of the figure.....  
Her white and light blue aura made for perfect camouflage in the winter background. She stared down at him with a neutral face.  
"You wished to see me?"  
"Yes. I believe one of my greatest achievements might soon become undone." 

Disclaimer: Castello, Salem, Marx, Fitch, and Adina belongs to Vivziepop. Winter, Bow, and Solstice is mine. The first chapter of Safe Haven's Angel. Tell me what you think. And please remember that Solstice is blind.


	2. Ch Call

A breathing noise softly sounded out as he just laid there.  
His head laid against his mate's chest as she still slept in the early morning. Her steady breath and heart beats adding to the calm aura of the room.  
A content thrum emanated from his throat as he curled around her more.  
"Mmmmmmm. Soft."  
"Thank you."  
He flinched, but soon relaxed and leaned more into her. "I thought you were still asleep."  
"Just woke up. You seem comfy."  
He felt a hand go up to his head and gently scratch his ear. A deep purr vibrated from his chest.  
She giggled and faintly felt his tail thump against the bed side.  
"Y-You know.....I don't feel like I deserve you at times."  
"Why?"  
"B-Because I'm a terrible person.....My work puts you in constant danger. I work with demons.....You even work for the same dangerous man at the studios."  
"Marx. You gotta stop putting yourself down like this. You're MORE than deserving of me."  
"........"He looked up at her. "And what if something does happen to you?"  
"Then it wouldn't be your fault."  
"........Mmm. Why do you have to be so soft?"  
"Changing the subject I see."  
"I'm serious. It's nice to just relax and enjoy a morning without worrying about stuff."  
A sound next to them interrupted the silence.  
"Uuuuuhhh. F--k me." Reluctantly, he gently uncoiled his arms around her and heaved his self of her chest. Flinging the sheets off, he stretched his body, making popping sounds.  
"Do you want me to answer it?"  
"No...It's probably more work for me anyways," he grumbled before reaching over and grabbing the phone from the bedside table and bringing it up to his face. "Yes?"  
She watched as his face went from tired and irritated to surprise.  
".....Whoa whoa whoa whoa! W-Wait. Slow down. What happened?.......Yes. I know about the O'coma Illness going around.....She got it? Oh..........Well, when did this happen?.....This morning!? A-Alright. I'll be there soon. Just try to keep things under control 'til I get there." He placed down the phone and sighed.  
"Who was it?"  
"Victor," he answered standing up.  
"Your apprentice?" He nodded. "What happened?"  
"You know Castello's wife? Well, he just got a call from the hospital today saying Solstice just went into a come from the virus that's been going around. Now everyone's panicking and I gotta go calm everything down." He fumbled for his suit.  
"Here. I'll come with you." She tossed the blankets back to stand up.  
"No. You enjoy your day off. Hopefully this won't take long." He managed to finally finish buttoning his suit and looked ack at her. "I don't want you near there with what's going around anyway."  
"Then, what do I do? We already had a day planned."  
"You can go to the Winter's End Festival. It's still going on."  
".....I guess. I was really hoping to spend some time together."  
He walked over to her. "I'm sorry, Honey. Tell ya what....I'll take you to that restaurant you really like when I get back. Ok?"  
"Alright."  
He smiled before leaning down to kiss her forehead. "Mwuh. I promise I'll be back as soon as I can." He stepped back and walked to the bedroom door. "Love you." He said before exiting.  
"......Love you, too.......*sigh* Guess my plans changed." She sighed before flopping backwards on the bed. ".......Winter festival it is then."  
A grumbling sound was heard.  
"......After breakfeast."  
................................................................................................................................................................................  
It had been a couple hours since Marx left........he still hadn't come back. Apparently work would take all day......  
Again.  
It wasn't bad though. The snow had began to melt and it was getting warmer. But, it was still cold outside as to why she was bundled up in her coat.  
Her ear twitched as she heard the familiar music of a carnival.  
Smiling, she hurried her pace and came to a corner. Turning it.....she stopped and stared in awe.   
A couple blocks away from her was the festival. She could faintly see a roller coaster and maybe a ferris wheel. The unmistakable scent of cotton candy and hot dogs. The music still playing.  
Still smiling, she started forward.......not knowing the dangers ahead.


	3. Seeing Things

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Suggestive towards end

The sweetness of the caramel apple in her mouth was enough to rot anyone's teeth out. But it tasted fantastic.  
It was near closing hours. The sun could be seen setting over the horizon. Showing how much time she really spent at the carnival.  
She won't deny that she had fun while there, but it would've been better with her mate. Unfortunately, he had been called away to deal with a massive panic at work and would probably be tired by the time he got home.  
She could hear excited people screaming joyfully as they took one last ride or shot at one of the games to win a prize.  
She was near the exit when a strong force was present on her shoulder. She barely had time to react before whoever had a hold of her spun her around.  
"................Can I help you?"  
"........."  
A VERY pale old man stared at her. From the white gloss over his eyes, she guessed he was blind too. He said nothing as he continued to stare at her while gripping both her shoulders.  
"......Are you lost, Sir?" The fox shifted uncomfortably under his silent gaze. "Do you need help?"  
He silently removed his hands....and slowly turned his head left.  
Curious, she looked at what he was blindly staring at."........Oh! Are you hungry?"  
She hadn't noticed until now, but the old man was thin as a needle. His ratty clothes hung off his body as he still stared at the food courts.  
"Stay right here." He said nothing as she walked away. Walking up to the food courts, she spotted a particular promising one and went over to it.  
The court tender smiled at her. "Evening, ma'am. What can I do for you?"  
"Your biggest funnel cake please."  
He nodded before reaching over and grabbing it. She thanked the man before paying for it and turning around. The blind man was still staring in her direction, but seemed to follow her with his eyes as she walked back over to him.  
"Here. I know it's not much, but it should help." She held up the small cake to him.  
He silently stared at her......before slowly reaching up and taking it. She watched as he silently began to tear pieces off it and eat it. When he finished, he looked back at her.  
"I hope that helped in some-"  
"You have a kind heart and soul. it's no wonder others are drawn to you."  
.........She blinked.  
His voice caught her completely off guard. Instead of an older, scratchy voice like she had expected, his voice sounded like that of a healthy young man.  
"oh....Thank you-"  
"Your father would've been proud."  
".......My father? Sorry, but my mother never married."  
"Hmm......I have a gift for you." Reaching up a hand, he pressed it to her forehead. "For the good you have spread, for the deeds you have done. Your true self unhidden. Adina's spell undone."  
He removed his hand and she stared bewildered at him"........What was-?"  
"Ma,am." She whipped around. A lady was staring at her. "Are you alright?"  
"Of course. I was just talking-" She froze. The old man was gone. She looked around, but saw no sign of him. "Where'd he go?"  
"Who?"  
"The blind homeless man."  
"What homeless man?"  
She looked at her. "The man I was just talking to. Didn't you see him?"  
"Uh....There wasn't anyone there. Especially an old man."  
"What?"  
"You were talking to someone that wasn't there."  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
It was dark by the time she got back to the apartment as the sun had completely set.  
The place was completely dark except for one room upstairs.  
She sighed and shook her head before walking over to the stairs to descend up. Never taking her eyes off the bedroom light. Getting closer, she noticed the door had been left slightly ajar. Upon reaching it, she pushed it open and looked inside.  
".........I thought as much." She smiled at the sleeping form of her mate as he sat slumped over the desk asleep. Next to him was a stack of paper.  
Carefully, she walked over to him and grabbed his shoulder. "Marx."  
"I swear I'll have the script finished by tomorrow!," he shouted suddenly standing up. His outburst made her jump back.  
He panted before looking around frantically.  
"Oh......Oh, it's just you." He slowly relaxed back down into his chair. "I....uh....Didn't hear you come in."  
"I can tell." She glanced at the paperwork. "Scripts and stuff?"  
"And all of Castello's work he needed done."  
"You did all that today?"  
"Pretty much." he reached up a hand to run through his hair. "Not that I'm not used to it."  
She gently placed a hand on his shoulder. "You need some sleep."  
"Can't. What if Castello calls?"  
"You can wake up then. Now, get it bed before I make you."  
He gave a skeptical look. "Exactly how can you make..........me? eep."  
The end of her tail fluffed against his cheek as she bent down to give him a smile.   
"Please.~ I promise to help keep you warm.~'  
"Hmmmmm." His face burnt a deep. "Y-You wicked female."  
'Ok. Have it your way. Sleep on the couch." She got off him."  
"Ok, ok. I'll go to bed.........Though....I might have trouble getting tired.~''  
"I think I can help with that.~'' She scratched his head which resulted in him giving out a rumble and his tail thumping against the floor.  
"Please.~ Do help.~''


	4. Back Pains

Her wincing and wriggling around first woke him up. Her pained expression only made him more worried.  
"Juju, you alright?.....Did I hurt you?"  
"N-No. I think I just slept on my back wrong." She winced as she shifted slightly.  
He whimpered before carefully lifting himself off and away from her. She gave him a concerned look before sitting up herself....only to wince in pain and place a hand to her back.   
"I-I don't think you should work today." She felt him place a hand on her back. "You don't look very good."  
"Marx. There are TWO people in this apartment and it takes both to make end's meat."  
"But-"  
"No, buts. I'm not going to sit around like some stay-at-home wife."  
"And your back?"  
"I'll take some pain reliever."  
".......No."  
"What?" She gave him a look but he only gave a stern look back.   
"N-No. Too much drama is happening right now and I don't need you around all that mess."  
"Baby." She reached up to kiss his cheek. "Mwuh. I appreciate the concern.....but I'm going to work."  
"Juju.....I-I'm the man of this house and my word is law. My foot is down and my mind is made up. You're NOT going."  
"..........."  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
"I hate your persuasion."  
She only smiled sweetly. "I promised to make it up to you later.~ And I fully intend to keep that promise. But, I think you would've been in a lot more trouble if Castello thought I was slacking off."  
He grumbled.  
"Oh, don't be like that.'  
"Ms. Foxor." A smaller studio assistant was walking up to them. "You're needed on Set 9. Winnie wasn't in today and we desperately need someone to fill in for her,"  
"What happened?"  
She shrugged before flipping through papers in her hands. "Something about her sister falling asleep. But we're WAY behind scheduale and Mr. Castello's already angry enough as it is."  
"Oh, my. I-I'll get ready immediately."  
"Yes, yes. Come." She grabbed her hand. "The Director is getting impatient." She paused before looking back at the dragon."......Mr. Marx...Mr. Castello is waiting for you in his office."  
His eats went back and a whimper escaped his throat. "I-I'm on my way."  
"Come."  
A particular tug on her arm made her lean forward and winced at the sudden pain that coursed down her spine. Her hand went around to rub at her back.  
"You ok, Miss?"  
"Oh, yeah. The medicine just hasn't kicked in yet." She forced a smile.  
"Well it better kick in soon. We have no time for that sort of delay."  
"A-Alright. If you really need my help that bad."  
"We do. trust me."  
She lead her through some of the hallways before coming to Set 9. People were running around carrying papers or props or anything else that was needed.  
One lady in particular was acting very hectic.  
"No, you insufferable bafoon! I asked for the script to Death's Tears. Not the rough draft for a play that isn't even finished." She glared at the smaller male. "Go return this and get me the right blooming script!" She yelled before tossing the papers at him.  
"Yes, Ma'am." he fumbled to catch the papers before scrambling away.  
"And somebody get the stage set up! We're late enough as it is!"  
"Ms. Director." She was pulled along, all the while wincing and holding her back, over to the woman. "I found the replacement you asked for."  
She stared down at them. "Well, don't just stand there like an idiot. Go get her ready! It'll take ages to clean this mess up." She waved a hand to the unfinished set.  
"Right. Yes, Ma'am." She then proceeded to pull her away towards the back stage.  
"I would really appreciate it if you didn't pull so much."  
"I do apologize but like I said before. The Director and Mr. Castello have been shoving work down our throats."  
"Believe me.....I know all too well," she mumbled remembering all the paperwork Marx had to do.  
"Well, then we better get you ready for the shooting."  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
It had been close to an hour for the make up crew to pretty her up and find the misplaced costume Winnie left behind.  
But, even after she was all ready, she still needed to wait for the set(which was still in shambles) to get set up.  
"Ms. Juliet?"  
"Hmm?"  
"The set's almost ready."  
"Ok....Thank you." She leaned back against the chair and raised her head up to the ceiling.  
The pain had only gotten worse to where she was starting to straighten her back out as much as possible. The pain medicine hadn't done anything to help and she was starting to feel very light headed.  
"Uuuuh....I don't think the medicine's helping at all."  
"Ms. Foxor. They're ready for you on the set."  
"Oh. Alright. Tell them I'm coming."  
She heard the assistant walk away before tilting her head back up to look in the mirror.  
"Guess I better go." She slowly stood up.....  
Only to lean forward against the vanity as a sudden jolt of pain coursed through her back. The pain was like nothing she ever felt before. it almost felt like something was trying to explode from her spine.  
"Ow...owowow." She tightly closed her eyes as a single tear rolled down her cheek.  
Slowly, she turned and attempted to make her way to the door....only to fall to her knees as another wave of pain hit her. She didn't stop The tears from flowing this time.  
Her worst fears were realized when something shifted beneath her skin. Something WAS bursting from her back!  
"HELP!!," she screamed as her vision blurred.  
The last thing she remembered was her pained scream and a ripping noise before darkness consumed her.


	5. Angel's Talk

The gleam of the left over snow on the ground was beautiful. But it didn't compare to the purity of the figure looking at it.  
He examined the weapon in his hands. It gleamed a mighty silver. A testament to how well he took care of it.  
"........I was wondering when you'd get here."  
"you have some nerve undoing what wasn't supposed to be undone."  
"........Straight to the point then. And I'm not the one who did it in the first place."  
"Are you saying what I did was wrong?"  
"........" He turned to look at her. "I'm saying that you had no authority over the situation. You had no right to take away the property of another one of our kind. Even if they are only half."  
"It was necessary for the protection of Safe Haven. Mirage already caused destruction and now you endanger the lives of others by exposing what she really is......I think that overrules any uncertainty about whether her wings were taken."  
"........"  
Silently sheathing his sword, he waked over to her. Snow crunching under his feet. Ounce close enough, he stopped and gave her a blank look.  
''It overrules nothing. You did not have any permission from Philip to touch the child. You forced her wings into her body and took any inheiritance from her father away."  
"Philp told me all about his spawn and trusted me to do the right thing is anything we're to happen. How is that overruled?!''  
He didn't answer.  
"Hunters and demons alike will come for her and kill any innocent they see."  
"....Perhaps. Or maybe she's the key to their salvation."  
".....You have no right. Do you have any idea what I've done?"  
"Yes....You're the one that sends the attack dog to murder demons.....and here I thought we were supposed to reign with honesty. Why Philip confided in you I may never know."  
"........I didn't notice anyone else disagreeing with my descisions."  
"Perhaps because they will never do what Philip did."  
"What? Elope with a mortal? Have a halfling? Forget his duties?"  
"Truly love."  
Silence.  
"............Why?"  
"Why what?"  
"Why now? After all these years."  
''Something will happen. And she may be the key for stopping it. I couldn't give back the powers you removed.....but I could release the wings you hid."  
".............."  
He sighed through his nose before side stepping around her and walking a couple feet away from her before stopping. Snow crunching all the while.  
"Adina......one last thing...."  
She didn't turn around.  
"I DO NOT want her in any 'accidents' as her mother was."  
She turned.....but all that was left was foot prints in the gleaming snow.  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
The weight of the unconscious fox in his arms felt heavy as he rushed past crowds of people towards his destination. Ignoring the angry shouts and looks as he only focused on the large white building in front of him.  
The door to said building burst open with a bang as others whirled at the commotion. He didn't stop there though as he rushed over to the desk with the limp woman in his arms.  
"Hey! I need a doctor over here! And I need one NOW!!"  
"Good god." She stared at her torn glittered dress and bloodied new limbs. "What in God's name happened to her?"  
"Do I look like I know what happened!? I literally found her like this! Now are you going to get me a doctor or not!?"  
"I-I'm sorry, Sir." She glanced between him and the unconscious fox. "All of our doctors are busy tending to the a coma patients."  
"Then get me a nurse! Surgeon! Someone to help her!"  
"Sir, there's nothing I can do. The hospital's full."  
A hand slammed down on the desk as the dragon growled, making her lean back.  
"I didn't RUN two blocks in the snow, almost getting hit by traffic just to have her die. I am not leaving until I see a-"  
"Is there a problem?"  
He turned around and came face to face with a man wearing a long white coat. The man's eyes widened at the sight of the fox.  
"Good lord!......It's an angel!"  
"A what?" He didn't get an answer s the assumed doctor rushed over and quickly began to look her over.  
"How long has she been like this?," He asked not looking up.  
"Uh.....I don't know. She was found like this. B-But she was complaining about back pains."  
"Hmm." Without warning, he scooped her up and away from him. "tammy, call ahead for Doctor Denice to came to Emergency Surgery, Room 5."  
The lady nodded before picking up a phone.  
He turned to leave, but stopped. "I'm sorry, Sir. You can't come."  
"That's my wife you're taking!"  
"Even so, the hospital has rules against that."  
"I-"  
"If you love her, then you'll trust us to do our job and stay out of our way."  
He said nothing as the doctor turned and left him standing there.  
"...........*whimper* Juliet?"


	6. Waking Up

"How did you come by this.....proclaimed angel?"  
Wait....What? Who was that?  
"Someone.....claiming to be her husband brought her in. I knew I had to call someone as soon as possible."  
"And how do we know it's an angel and not just some interspecies child?"  
Are you blind to the miracle before you?! This is a sign from the Lord above!"  
"Maybe, but how do we know for sure?"  
"I think she's waking up."  
Soon, two blue eyes opened up to the world. The first thing she saw was blinding light. She blinked a couple times, but soon a room and the faces of three figures appeared.  
The first was a taller figure covered in spots. He gave her a concerned look. Two other figures were staring at her. One with a giant grin and the other with a white coat.  
She stared at them for a moment before opening her mouth.  
"W-Who are you?," She asked in a raspy voice. She winced at how dry her throat was and wished she had some water. "Where am I?"  
"My name-'' She turned to the figure in the lab coat. "-is Dr. Timothy Larson. You're in E District's Sacred Heart Health Center. This-" he gestured to the spotted mammal. "-is Mr. Zechariah. He came all the way here to see you."  
She looked between the two. They were there to just see her? Why? Was he another doctor? Was there something wrong with her?  
"Miss." Said mammal leaned down eye level with her. "Do you remember what happened?"  
"......." She paused trying to relay what had happened. ".......I was having back pains and I guess I fainted from the pain."  
"So you are unaware of these?" He reached a paw up to go past her head and touched something.  
Immediately, pain course down her back and something moved away from his touch making her freeze. Something MOVED......and it was ATTACHED to her and she FELT it.  
Slowly, she turned to look over her shoulder......And her jaw dropped in a silent scream.  
There, on her back.........was a mass of white feathers.  
Startled, she whipped around to look over her other shoulder, only to find more feathers. She kept going back and forth before looking back up to them. Panic in her eyes.  
"W-What are these?"  
"They appear to be bird wings. Most likely dove or pidgeon."  
"......Why are they there?"  
"We were hoping you could tell us."  
She gave them a look. "I don't know how they got there."  
"You don't? Hmm."  
"I told you! It's a sign of God!" The small animal with the big grin practically shoved himself into her personal space before forcefully grabbing her hand. "My child. YOU will be the one to save us from the devilish illness plaguing the districts."  
"Leeson, please. The young lady has been through enough." A black paw gently forced the mammal away. "You'll have to excuse Brother Leeson. He tends to excite rather quickly."  
Simon bristled before raising a hand. "I'm not easily excited." He pointed at her. "This girl is a healer! She can cure us all of this illness!"  
"And how do you figure that?"  
"Notice the heavenly blue tint to her wings. The cross markings on the edges. Those features are shared with healing angles as our ancient scrolls and pictures depict. There's no other reason for her to have them if she's not here to save the innocent."  
"I think this might be a bit much for her to take in." The doctor gestured to the fox girl who was staring at the blankets.  
"Miss?" She looked up at him. "Tell me....What's your name?"  
"....J-Juliet Foxor. Am I in trouble?"  
"Certainly not, Ms. Juliet. Though I do have a few questions."  
A rapid knocking at the door got their attention. Slowly, the door opened and a woman poked her head in.  
"Doctor, there's an angry man outside refusing to leave. He claims to be the patient's husband."  
"Marx." She breathed a sigh of relief. At least there would be one familiar face around here.  
"You're married?"  
"Yes." She held up her paw which had a silver ring on one of her fingers.  
".....Hmm. Very well. Let him in."  
The nurse nodded before disappearing from view. A couple moments later, a pair of hurried footsteps sounded out. The door burst open and a figure stopped in the doorway. She instantly perked up and her tail thumped against the bed.  
"Marx!"


	7. Want to Run Some Tests?

Said dragon stood in the doorway. His yellow eyes stared at Juliet, who now was still wagging her tail in happiness. He slowly went back and forth between her.....and her new limbs.  
"Honey?," she asked curiously. He didn't move so she tried again, "Marx?"  
Out of no where, he bolted towards her. Pushing the none important figures out of the way to grab her cheeks. With a worried look, he moved her head side to side carefully examining her.  
"ARE YOU ALRIGHT?! DID THEY HURT YOU?! HOW MANY FINGERS AM I HOLDING UP?! DID THEY TRY EXPERIMENTING ON YOU?!"  
He was panicked, but could you really blame him.  
Juliet was taking longer than usual to get ready, so one of the female assistants volunteered to go check on her.....The blood curdling scream that followed was enough to alert half the studio. Thankfully, someone had enough sense to go get him.  
He was about half way through the giant stack of paper work his boss left behind when a panicked Victor burst through his office door. His green eyes filled with horror.  
"J-J-Juliet.....down....b-b-blood everywhere," was all he managed to stammer out.  
And it was enough to get him out of his chair and down the hallway faster than you could say Romeo and Juliet. The crowd of people in the doorway was scary enough as he pushed through to the dressing room.  
The sight before him almost caused him to faint.  
There was Juliet......collapsed on the floor and red liquid seeping from her back.  
Of course naturally he freaked and just grabbed her without thinking. At the time, he ignored the wings that somehow burst from her back. Probably assuming it was a part of the costume she was wearing. Only one thought was on his mind as he ran.  
Hospital.  
But, now that he was here, he could plainly see the wings fused to her back. He slowly released one of his hands from her cheek and shakily reached out to touch a wing. It flinched at his brief touch.  
".......Marx?"  
"ARE YOU OK?!"  
His loud volume made her lean back.  
"Yes.....I'm fine. Just.....don't yell."  
Two arms suddenly wrapped around her before she was pulled against his chest in a tight hug. She could've sworn she heard him give a rumble of relief.  
"You're.....Married?"  
Leeson was staring at the taller dragon at the taller dragon with a strange look.   
"Why should I tell you?.......Who are you people?" He glanced between him, the doctor, and Mr. Zecariah......before freezing at the sight of the large animal. She felt him unconsciously grip her tighter and a whine escaped his throat.  
She tilted her head up confused at him. Was something wrong?  
"A assure you, Sir. No one has harmed her in our pressance," he responded calmly, "I only have a few questions. If you don't mind me asking."  
"........What questions?"  
He turned to her. "Have you always had these wings or any knowledge of them?"  
She shook her head.  
"Are you absolutely certain?"  
"Y-Yes."  
"Hmmm." He turned to the door. "Mr. Larson. If I may have a word with you."  
"Oh,...Yes. Yes, of course."  
A moment later, they were both out the door. Leaving the three in the room. Leeson gave a hum before also walking to the door. Mumbling incoharant, leaving the couple on the bed.  
"..........I don't like this."  
"Why? What's wrong?"  
He gave her a worried look. "T-That's Zechariah. Z-Zoey's father. Y'know. Winter's girlfriend."  
".......The PeaceKeeper?"  
She had only met Winter's girlfriend a couple times. But according to her husband, the Don only approved of her because her father was a PeaceKeeper and it would be benefitial to their mafia.  
"Yes. A-And I have a bad feeing about al this."  
She opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted when the door opened and Mr. Zechariah and Dr. Larson made their way back inside.  
"Miss.....It's come to my attention that, considering our current crisis, I'd like to request you stay in the hospital until you fully recover from the blood loss. And allow us to run a few tests."  
"Tests?" His eyes narrowed. "What kind of tests?"  
He turned to the dragon. "A few x-rays and blood related things. To make sure no one's using anything supernatural to mess with our heads. You must understand our position. If everyone knows about this, there might be false hope and rumors spread. The last thing the hospital or you need is hundreds, possibly thousands of people trying to demand you do things you can't. The last thing we need is whoever is behind this to cause a distraction away from the actual problem."  
"Wait......How do you know someone's behind this and it's not just caused naturally?"  
He went silent for a few seconds."..........I'm afraid....I cannot release that information until the culprit has been caught."  
They both glanced at each other.  
"........And if the wings ARE naturally there?"  
"Then we would have no choice but to let you go. I cannot hold you hostage if you have not commited any crimes......But...." He gave them and the doctor a stern look, "I would rather this stay between us until the matter is resolved. Who knows what kind of people this would stir up."  
"What a second." The doctor looked around. ".........Where's Leeson?"  
Everyone froze.  
"........Didn't you see him go out of the room?"  
"No. I was talking to Zecariah. I didn't know he left."  
Marx gulped and looked down at his wife who went wide eyed.  
"........oh, no."  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
The still cold weather clung to his body as he trudged back to where he currently stayed.  
The warmth of the cabin fell over him as he entered. He almost didn't notice the white female walking towards him.  
"Fitch."  
"Hello, Misk."  
The moth woman smiled. "Hi, Honey. What was the meeting about this time?"  
".......Is Miracle gone?"  
''She's having a sleepover with Cappuccino. Why?"  
"I don't think she'll like what I'm about to say about her aunt."


	8. School Fight

The chattering of the many students around him did little to distract his mind from the current situation.

Anger,frustration, worry......fear. All of which bubbled in his mind. But, none the less, he was taught at an early age to repress those feelings if he wanted to live up to his father's expectations. HE was the future leader of the serpent mafia. HE was the one to take over should anything happen to his parents. It was up to HIM to remain in control of his emotions and not let anything get to him.  
He almost didn't notice the figure sit down beside him.  
"Winter?"  
He flinched before relaxing back with a sigh. "Hello, Jamie."  
The fox tilted her head at her friend. It was rare to see him like this. Hands clasped to his forehead, not even attempting to look at her. Something must've really been bothering him.  
"Where might Zoey be?"  
"There was an emergency cheerleader meeting. Someone broke their ankle I think."  
"I see."  
A couple moments of silence pasted. He remained in the same position.  
She nervously looked around. "So.....um....Zoey told me what happened to your mom."  
"I thought she would."  
"......I'm sorry."  
"Don't apologize. There was nothing you....or I could've done unfortunately."  
"I'm still sorry."  
"..........."  
"Is there anything I can do for you?"  
"......As a matter of fact-" He finally looked up at her. "Yes."  
"What?"  
He reached over and grabbed at the snowflake pin on his suit. A gift from his mother. ".....There's a good chance Mother won't recover from that blasted virus, and the way Father's going.......He too might be driven to an early grave. Which means I'll be forced to take on the 'business' earlier than expected." His dark blue eyes turned to her. "I'd like to know I can trust someone if anything ever takes a turn for the worst."  
She blinked.  
"There's very few I trust. Can I count on you to be there?"  
"Of course! Zoey too. I'd never let ya down."  
"...." He smiled before turning away. "Good."  
She smirked. "Speaking of us....Are you planning on marrying Zoey after highschool?"  
"......Why do you ask that?"  
"She's wearing the promise ring you gave her like everyday. That's so old school."  
He chuckled. "Well, I might as well let everyone else know she's mine than to have some certain mooch for her."  
"Travor."  
"Yes. Like that ignorant fool."  
His fangs gritted at the memory of the spoiled naga. Always blackmailing and threatening others to get his way. The stupid idiot didn't know when to quite. Even after the many beating he and others gave to him.  
Jamie grabbed him arm. "No. Travor." She nodded behind him.  
"Well, well."  
He froze at the voice. He gave a low hiss but didn't turn around. Beside him, Jamie scowled at the naga and his werewolf tag along.  
"What do you want?"  
He smiled down at her. "I merely wished to invite Zoey to dinner with me tonight. Where is she?"  
"That's none of your business!" Half the cafeteria stopped to watch yet another fight with Travor. "Why can't you just leave my sister alone?"  
"There's no glory if the challenge is too easy.~'' She growled and bared her fangs at him."Oh.~ Would you look at the cute pup,~" he mockingly cooed.  
Unfortunately, it was true. Jamie was born cute and still looked cute no matter how hard she tried. It was the reason a lot of others teased or didn't take her seriously.  
"Says the Mama's Boy! You wouldn't even last ONE DAY without her strapping a diaper on your a$$ and babying you!," she yelled standing up.  
"At least I have a mother. If I remember correctly, your mother left you and your sister in your fathers' care and ran back to the human world." He smiled wider at her frozen state. "Must be hard living knowing that your mother didn't want you. And that your father's a known playboy-"  
"Enough!"  
Blue and pink eyes turned to the pale boy who refused to look at them.  
"Insulting Zoey's family won't make her like you, and she wants absolutely NOTHING to do with you as she's my girl. Now leave us alone. We have more important things to deal with."  
"....." The naga chuckled before leaning backwards and near his head. "Or what, Blue Boy? Think you're any better than myself outside this school? Quite the name you made yourself on the lonely streets. Hmm."  
"........."  
"Then again.....You just might freeze in headlights like your DEER mothe-"  
WHAM!!  
A resounding gasp emanated around the room. Even Jamie and Josslyn froze in the spot. At the sight ofWinter standing and holding Travor on the table by his hair. He stared up at Winter unmoving despite the pain in his head.  
"My mother-," he forced out through clenched fangs. His eyes a haunting white with thin blue slits,"-is in the hospital with whatever has been going around and I do not know if she'll make it." Oh, how he was just itching to reach for one of his darts and deal with this problem once and for all. "You are EXTREMELY stupid to assume you'd get away with that."  
Neither noticed Josslyn slowly pick up something from a table.  
"I didn't make myself a name for no reason. The only reason you're not dead is because your father is on good terms with mine-"  
BAM!!  
Pain exploded from the side of his head making him stumble back and clutch his head. Releasing Travor from his grip. He let out a cross between a hiss and yell and stared at his attacker. Apparently Josslyn had grabbed a lunch tray and hit him over the head to save her friend.  
"YOU B*TCH!!"  
Without warning, a red blur tackled the wolf to the ground. The two k-9's snarled and grappled while everyone else scrambled to get out of their way. Winter immediately rushed over to help, but something tripped and dragged him back.  
He hissed and struggled to get a hold of something before he felt more of his body get restrained and held together. Before realizing he was becoming trapped within Travor's coils. The pink eyed serpent hissed and compressed him tighter.  
Behind him, Josslyn was pinned under Jamie who was using her own tail as rope to keep her down.  
"The tail is mightier than the mobster. Eh, Winter?" He continued to squeeze him tighter. He struggled and was starting to loose breath.  
There was only one thing he could do.....  
Releasing a hiss, he bit down on him as hard as he could. Travor yelled and instantly released him. Someone grabbed his shoulders and pulled him away. Winter fell to the ground, gasping for air and struggling to get up.  
"That's enough!"  
A purple furred animal stared him down. An iron grip on his shoulders. Behind him, a green dragon was holding a cussing and creaming Jamie from a VERY tired looking Josslyn.  
Winter managed to get on his hands and knees. Still gasping and spitting out red, copper tasting liquid. The pain in his head had gotten worse but he managed to hiss and slowly reach a hand to his secret pocket of darts.  
''What is going on here?!"  
He slowly lowered his hand down. Blue eyes looked at them all.  
"Jamie!" She stopped and stared at him. "What is going on here?! And why does it look like a war zone!?"  
"They started it!" She pointed a paw at the naga and werewolf.  
The older fox glared at all of them. "I don't care who started it. It ends now. Mavric. Indigo. Please, escort these four to Keioko. There are a few things I need to take care of."  
The green dragon nodded before slowly releasing Jamie and reaching a hand over to help Josslyn up. Indigo roughly grabbed Winter and hauled him to his feet. Keeping a firm grip on both snakes, he began to march them away.  
"But, Dad. They-"  
"Jamie. Zechariah has been overwhelmed enough with all the extra work and my paws are tied trying to help manage the school. The LAST thing we need is our daughter setting a back example."  
"........"  
"......*sigh* We will discuss this in my office later. Make sure these four come to my office afterwards."  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
The walk to Keiko's office seemed like forever. Especially since the two boys had to keep the four from randomly fighting again.  
"Oh, my," she said, "What a mess we got ourselves into. Let's get the little vixen and snowflake wrapped up first. Shall we? You two can wait out here."  
Winter and Jamie disappeared into her office and the others sat outside.  
A couple of moments of silence passed......before Travor looked down at Josslyn. Her hair was a mess and she looked as if a tornado hit her. Giving a hiss, he reached over and began to straighten her out. She only held still and let him sort her out.  
Indigo raised a brow at this strange moment of kindness from Travor and looked at Mavric who only shrugged back. His red eyes soon darted to the wall behind him.....Without warning, he quickly stood up and away from it. Mavric confused, looked behind him and instantly knew why.  
"What's wrong with you? Something bite your a$$?"  
Indigo narrowed his eyes. "No. Holy water."  
Ever since the Vampire Queen and fall of Mirage, it was required to have at least one bottle of holy water in every other hallway at schools. Being a cybernetic demon fox, Indigo couldn't touch it. The weird thing was, it only burnt full blooded or half demons/vampires.  
"You don't say.....Well, hand it over. I can use it to scrub some of the blood off."  
"Wouldn't you get in more trouble? It's only supposed to be used for emergencies."  
"Holy or not it's still water. I'm sure Mother will pay for another bottle." Using his long tail, he quickly took the bottle away from it's place in the wall.  
.......Only the smooth glass bottle easily slipped from his tail and glass shattered.  
"AAAAAHHHH!!!!"


	9. Heritage Secrets Part 1

The naga continued to shriek and clutched at his tail, which made frantic twitching motions. Josslyn froze as a burning smell filled her nostrals.  
He continued to scream until Mavric was able to grab him around the waist and force him to hold still. The naga looked at his now half burnt tail with tears of pain flowing down his face.  
"THAT ISSSSN'T F**KING HOLY WATER!! SSSSOME FOOL PLACSSED ACSSSID IN THAT BOTTLE!!," he hissed/yelled out.  
Indigo raised a brow before looking down at the now shattered glass bottle and spilt water all over the floor.".....Then why isn't it dissolving the floor?"  
"HOW in the bloody H*LL should I know?! That hocus pocus water burnt me!"  
"But..." He turned to his werewolf friend. "It's only enchanted, or blessed I guess, to kill undead sh*t."  
"*tch* So what? Are you implying I have demon blood?"  
No one spoke but looked at each other silently.  
".......Oh, come on! You all can't be sssserious. My mother is full blooded human."  
"But, you aren't."  
He crossed his arms and glared down at the demonic fox. "You're point?"  
He sighed and rolled his eyes. "Do you know WHO you're biological father is?"  
"Of course not! My mother wanted a child so she found a random donor."  
"Then wouldn't it stand to reason that he could've been anyone?"  
"........."  
He didn't have time to react before the door opened and Winter and Jamie stepped out. Except Winter now had an ice pack strapped to his head and a few bruises marked his face. Jamie also had a few bruises (but you couldn't tell because of her fur) and a black eye. She growled at Josslyn, but stopped when Winter grabbed her shoulder.  
''Don't. They aren't worth our time. Besides....we have a meeting with your father in his office. If we're late, it may bring us more trouble."  
".....Fine." She backed off and let Winter steer her away, but that didn't stop them glaring.  
"Oh, my. What happened here?" Keiko glanced at the mess on the floor then at Travor's tail. She tutted before picking it up.  
"Owowowow."  
"Hmm. It seems we had another accident. Let's fix up your boo boos before we send you off to see Mr. Fabian. Shall we? Ahehehehe."  
-20 Minutes Later-  
The older fox looked at the four children in front of him. Travor, now cleaned up, had most of his tail bandaged and also had an ice pack from Winter slamming his head on the table. Josslyn just had a few band aids from where Jamie bit and scratched her.  
He faced the naga and werewolf first."........Destruction of school property, harassment, bullying other students, putting not only yourselves but other students in danger, fighting on school grounds, insulting a teacher, and attempting to possibly KILL someone by squeezing them to death."  
"......I-"  
He held up a paw. "No more excuses. You two have been here so much, those chairs should have name tags for each of you."  
They remained silent.  
"You're VERY lucky I decided NOT to expel you two. After school and weekend detention for both of you for the rest of this school year. And you'll be cleaning the school under supervision.......Travor, I'll also be calling your mother about this. SOMEONE has to pay for the lunch tray and bottle you two broke. I also think it'll be a good idea for you two to get special tutoring from Ms. Carrie since I noticed your grades are slipping."  
"WHAT?! How is THAT fair?!"  
"I could always call juvenile hall or social services instead.....I doubt your mother will appreciate that."  
"........"  
"I thought so. You should have thought of that BEFORE you started the fight. If ONE more thing happens, instantly expelled......And you two." Jamie flinched under her father's hard stare. "Zechariah and I raised you and Zoey better than this. You should have come to me or someone else about this instead of fighting and putting yourself and others in harm's way. I expected better from you."  
"But......They started it."  
"It doesn't matter WHO started the fight, Jamie! Someone could've gotten seriously hurt! ALL FOUR OF YOU are lucky no one ended up in the hospital! Or worse!"  
The room was silent.   
Fabian sighed and leaned back into his chair. "......But....since many eyewitnesses clarified it WAS self defense and this is your first time with this sort of thing.....After school detention for the rest of this month. You'll be cleaning after school along with Travor and Josslyn until the first day of next month. And I DO NOT want to hear of ANY fights between any of you......Winter. I'll be letting your father know about this."  
"I understand completely."  
He nodded. "Good. Your punishments start tomorrow after school. For now, go back to class. I have some phone calls to make."  
Zoey had been waiting for them outside the office. She embraced Winter and Jamie as soon as she saw them.  
"OMG!! Look at you two." She carefully touched their faces to examine their battle wounds. "I couldn't get here until after gym class. Caramel told me what happened."  
"I assure you, we're perfectly fine. Nothing a little time and medicine won't cure."  
"*sigh* That's a relief."  
Behind her, Travor smirked at her cheerleading uniform and purred. Making her flinch and Winter hiss. Jamie gave off another(unfortunately cute sounding) growl.  
"My.~ What an adorable little outfit.~"  
She slowly turned her head towards him.  
"Uh....Travor."  
"Were you wearing it just to-?"  
BAM!  
"AAHH!!" He leaned away and clutched his nose after a rather hard punch was placed to it.  
SLAP!!  
Josslyn yelped and fell to the floor with one hard slap.  
"ZOEY WALDEN!!," Fabian yelled getting up out of his seat, "Just what do you think you're doing?!"  
Being a cheetah, she easily used her fast reflexes to her advantage and delivered a rather hard punch to Travor's nose(which was now bleeding) and slap to Josslyn's cheek(which was hard enough to send her to send her to the floor). The door to Fabian's office was still open, and he saw the whole thing. But she didn't care.  
"I'm tired of the constant flirts and fights!" She stared directly at Travor. "Don't you EVER come near me, my boyfriend, or sister again!"  
"Zoey!" Fabian got between them. "I just got through talking to Jamie about this." He gazed at her heavy breathing and tears....before sighing. "Some punishment as Jamie and Winter. You two!"  
Travor looked up from helping Josslyn off the floor. One hand still clutching his nose."  
"Nurse's office now. Then back to class. The rest of you do the same thing. We'll be discussing this at home, Girls."  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
A small light came from the small match in his hands. He hadn't been able to relieve stress(smoke) inside the hospital and had to resort to going outside.  
Taking a long drag from the cigar, he let out a shaky breath. Tired from many nights of little sleep.  
"Sir?"  
His piercing yellow eyes slowly turned to the nurse.  
"There's a call for you in the office."


	10. Heritage Secrets Part 2

The cold winter air nipped at his skin. He didn't respond to it though. He stood perfectly still against the otherwise freezing weather.  
"........"  
His sharp blue eyes darted to the right as a black limo slowly drove up. It stopped it front of him before the passenger door quickly swung open.  
"Get in. Now."  
He didn't need to be told twice as he ducked his head and climbed into the limo. As soon as he sat down, the door was slammed shut and the limo took off.  
It was dark, making his father's yellow eyes glow besides the end of his cigar. They stared at each other silently.  
".........What happened?"  
He knew his father wouldn't accept just any excuse. Answer incorrectly and his father would most likely punish him by refusing to let him see his mother. Don't answer and he'll become more agitated.  
"......He insulted Mother. I merely put him in his place."  
His father's eyes narrowed.".....Who?"  
"Travor."  
He nodded and more silence followed.  
"........Winter. If given the chance, you have permission to end him......Understood?"  
"Yes, Father."  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
"Exactly how long do these tests take?"  
The doctor tiredly looked over his shoulder at the giant cheetah before rolling his eyes and turning back to the viles. "Well.....Considering that we're STILL using all the limited resources we have for the coma patients AND studying the blasted virus.....I can't be too sure of any due dates."  
"......I see."  
".....Do you really think she's connected to this?"  
"I can't be too sure of anything yet, and I can't exactly rule out ANY possibilities just yet."  
"Mmm hmm."  
A moment of silence pasted.  
"......So, what DO your capital scientists know about the virus?"  
The cheetah narrowed his eyes."......Only that it's a genetically altered virus gene that's been spliced with something that mimics a knockout drug that renders the victims unconscious. Whoever did this was very scientifically skilled."  
"Hmm. There's not many with the intelligence to cook up such a thing."  
"I know. Which makes it more difficult to narrow down suspects."  
"Anyone you suspect yet?"  
"............A few."  
"Really? Like who?"  
".......I'm not at liberty to say."  
"Really now?"  
A sudden knock at the door got their attention.  
"......Come in."  
The door slowly opened and a nurse stepped in.  
"I'm sorry to bother you, Doctor."  
"That's alright. What do you need?"  
She held up her hand, and in it was a phone. "There's a call for Mr. Zechariah from a Mr. Fabian. He seems persistant."  
The giant cheetah stood up and walked over to the woman. Ringing his tail around the phone, he brought it up to his ear.  
"Fabian?"  
"Zechariah," the familiar voice of the fox came through.  
"What is it? I haven't got much time to spare."  
"......*sigh* I know. I wouldn't have bothered you if it wasn't important.''  
"Then what is it?"  
"The girls got into a fight today."  
There was a pause.  
".........What kind of fight?"  
"*sigh* Baltimore's children."  
"Travor."  
"And Josslyn and Winter I'm afraid. The boy was harassing the girls again."  
"Oh, no. What happened this time?"  
"From what I understand, the boys started a fight and dragged the girls into it, then Zoey assaulted the two troublemakers."  
He held a paw to his face. "And what did you do about it?"  
"After school detention for the girls and Winter, and detention for the two who started it for the rest of the school year. Plus tutoring from Carrie."  
"Not suspention?"  
"They need less free time and more discipline. And no one can do discipline better than Carrie can."  
"No argument there. What about the girls?"  
"They're in their rooms. Grounded."  
He hummed. "Good. There is something I need to take care of, but be assured I'll have a talk with them once I get home."  
"Alright."  
There was a click signaling Fabian had hung up. He carefully gave the burse back the phone and turned back to the doctor.  
"How soon can you have that test done?"  
"*sigh* Two maybe three hours."  
"Wonderful."  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
The stepping of feet calmly stepped through the slush on the sidewalk. Though the stopped and turned to wait for the other figure.  
"W-W-What m-misssserable weather."  
The naga slithered in a VERY thick coat, two scarves, and a hat. Being half snake, Travor was partially cold blooded and was weak in cold weather. Unfotunately there was no clothes to cover a snake tail.  
"It is winter."  
He hissed and narrowed his eyes. "I would appreciate it if you didn't mention that word."  
She only mumbled an ok in a monotone, almost emotionless voice.  
He paused and looked down at her. ".......N-Now what'ssss with that nonsssssscenssse?"  
"What?"  
"Y-You usually l-lighten up when we g-get home."  
"So you listen when I'm unhappy but not when I try to warn you when something's gonna happen......Nice."  
He gave her a look. "W-What? S-Sssso you're s-sssssaying thisss isss MY f-fault?"  
"THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT IM SAYING!!," she yelled throwing her arms up. Her loud outburst made him lean back, "YOU NEVER LISTEN TO ME!!"  
He watched shivering as she continued to ramble.  
"WE COULD'VE GOTTEN KILLED MULTIPLE TIMES!! BUT EVERYTIME I TRY TO SAY OR DO SOMETHING YOU BLOW ME OFF LIKE I'M JUST A PUP!!" She stopped to take a few deep breaths, tears running. "AND I ALWAYS GET HURT BECAUSE OF YOU!!"  
"......T-Then why do you even bother to ssstay around me!?"  
"Because no matter how many times your stupid a$$ gets in trouble, you're my friend! And I still love and care about you!"  
"................L-Love me?"  
"Just f**king forget everything I said." She turned away. "You always do anyways."  
The door was opened and she stormed in.  
"Hello, Jossy."  
"Hi."  
Slowly, the naga slithered in after her.  
"Hi, Honey! How's my precious baby?"  
"......." He slowly looked at his mother. ".......I may have a few concsssserns."


	11. Heritage Secrets Part 3

"Don't worry, Baby. Seventy dollars in damage is little compared to MY legacy."  
She carefully applied more make up and glanced at the reflection. The naga in the mirror slouched on the couch behind her. He refused to look at her and instead just stared at the ceiling. She meanwhile grazed a hand over the MANY cosmetics and beauty products at her disposal.  
"I'll think of something to do about this detention and tutoring. Maybe a big fund to the school. For now, we'll just have to play along." She finally picked up a glittery black lip gloss and held it up. "You're being awfully quiet. Is something bothering my little snake?"  
"......." He finally looked at her. "........Mother. You love me right?"  
"OF COURSE!!! Why would you ask such a thing?"  
"......I don't know.....Josslyn admitted she had....feelings for me."  
"Oh, I already knew that."  
".......WHAT?!" His jaw dropped. "How long has this been happening?!"  
"A couple years."  
"And you said nothing?!"  
She shrugged. "I assumed you already knew since you two are with each other everyday. Besides, you were already after......What's her name?.....Zoey! I'm pretty sure you wouldn't have been interested."  
"Why didn't she tell me?"  
"Honey." She stopped and turned around to face him. "To understand someone, you need to think like them. How do you think I got where I am now?"  
"I don't get it."  
"Well, think." She crossed her legs and leaned back. "Her mother didn't want her and you took her in. Of course she'll latch some kind of attraction to you. Crush or otherwise."  
"...........What should I do?"  
She shrugged again before turning back around. "That's up for you to decide, Dear."  
He paused still staring at his mother. Josslyn had been with him since they were both twelve. Yes. He cared about her, and she cared about him enough to take a few beatings for his sake. When exactly did she start 'liking' him? Good god! How long has this been going on? Did he even feel anything back? Yes, he WAS possessive of her. But he always chalked that up to her being his only friend. He glanced down at his still bandaged tail.....which brought him back to his other questions.  
".........Mother?"  
"Yes, Dear?" She paid him no mind as she carefully examined her face.  
"When the holy water spilt on me, it burnt half my tail off." She froze. "That could only happen if I was of demon blood........All those years ago. Do you remember who your donator was?"  
A silence filled the room.  
"...............Not personally. No. I've only ever seen him twice. Once, to make you, and one other time quite briefly.......I haven't seen him since."  
".......Could he have been a demon?"  
"Possibly. I don't know his name......and I made a deal with him to keep his identity a secret."  
"So.......you don't know for sure?"  
She shook her head. "I'm afraid not."  
A moment of silence passed.  
".........I think I'll go speak with Josslyn."  
"Ok, Honey."  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
The night had been quite hectic with her husband worrying about her health and the new wings on her back.  
Right now she was sleeping against said husband while he battled his urge to sleep by talking to someone on his phone.  
"I told you. I DON'T KNOW how it happened or why it happened. All I know is that this stays between YOU and ME."  
"Well, I-I don't see how I can help, Sir."  
He groaned. "Victor. Just take care of any and all paperwork until I get back. Have Gustav help you with anything you need. Just TRY to keep things together until I get back."  
"Ok, Sir.....Uh....How's Ms. Juliet?"  
His yellow eyes glanced to the fox leaning against him. Her body slowly rising and falling in her sleep.  
"......She's fine. The doc says she'll be weak from the stress and bloodloss for a couple days though."  
"That's good. Hey. Which Hospital are you at?"  
He raised a brow. "E District's Health Center. Why?"  
"That's the same hospital Mr. Castello brought Ms. Solstice to, and where most of our ill staff are being hospitalized."  
He froze......and looked down at his wife. ".....Castello? Here?"  
"Well, not at the moment. There was some emergency and he had to go pick up his son. I don't know how long he'll be out though."  
He sighed and pulled his wife closer out of instinct. "That's a relief. I have to go before someone sees me."  
"Alright, Sir. I'll see you later."  
There was a click signaling Victor had hung up. Lowering his phone....he paused when his sharp ears heard approaching footsteps. Thinking fast, he shoved his phone into his back pocket just as someone stuck their head in.  
"HELLO SINNERS!!"  
"YOU!!"  
Leeson had returned but this time he flung the door open to reveal another figure.  
"........The h*ll are you?"  
The calm looking animal smiled at him.  
"We're here to cleanse the angel of any past sins."


	12. Heritage Secrets Part 4

The dark room was silent as the figure laid on the bed. The blanket pulled over her head.  
She didn't move when someone knocked at the door.  
"Josslyn."  
"Go the F**K away!"  
"Oh, come on! You can't stay in there forever!"  
"Watch me!"  
There was a pause.  
"........" She curled her body under the blanket. "Just go away, Travor."  
"I'm here to apologize."  
"Oh! So NOW you wanna talk about it?"  
"Look. Just......open the door."  
"..........."  
"Please."  
A moment of silence passed.....before she sighed and kicked the blankets off her. Getting up, she stretched out her limbs before making her way over to the door. The door was yanked open and her yellow eyes looked up towards the naga. He smiled awkwardly and blinked. Apologizing was never easy for him.  
"So.....M-May I come in?"  
".........*sigh* Sure. Why not?" She stepped aside and let him slither in.  
"Thank you....So...Are you feeling better?''  
"Yeah. I guess," she mumbled as she closed the door.  
"Oh, let's not start that again. We both know you're more than capable of speaking your mind." He crossed his arms and gave her a look.  
"Well, what am I supposed to say?!" She pointed at him. "YOU are the one that got us in trouble! It's YOUR fault I got hurt!!"  
"I'm FULLY aware of that!....." He hissed and reached up a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose. "Let's......not do this anymore. Fighting between us won't fix anything."  
"Then what do you want?"  
"To apologize, Woman! Why else would I be here?!"  
She stared at him.".........And you expect me to just accept it like that?"  
"Yes. No. I don't know! D*MMIT! I'm making an effort here!"  
"Well, whoop-te-do! That'll really fix everything I went through!"  
"Well, what do you expect me to do!?" He held his arms out in a begging motion. "What can I do?!"  
"For starters, stop getting us in trouble! And maybe STOP YELLING at me!!"  
"ALRIGHT!!....Alright." He held his hands up in defeat. "I'll.....TRY to not get us in trouble."  
".......*psh*" She shook her head and leaned back against the door. "I really don't know about you."  
"You know me enough to love me."  
A silence followed. He noticed she looked away and tapped one of her feet against the floor.  
This made him raise a brow. "is it true?"  
"........So what if it is? You like Zoey and every other girl that's prettier and more important."  
".....Is that why you never told me?"  
"...........What do you think?"  
He stared at her......before smiling. A real smile not a smirk.  
"Well......I doubt Zoey will be any fun when she marries Winter. Which will be after next year. I'll need someone to keep my interests on."  
"......" She slowly turned to face him. ".......Are you saying that you don't like her anymore?"  
He shrugged. "Perhaps. But I think wolf skin would look better on a wife than spots.~"  
"........You're still a cocky b*st*rd."  
"Maybe so. But, I made an interesting discovery."  
"What?"  
"I believe my father might've been a demon."  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
The dragon stared at the two preists in the doorway. Out of instinct, he pulled his wife closer and narrowed his eyes.  
The calmer one of the two looked at Leeson before looking back at them, still smiling. "Perhaps I should explain. My name is Christopher. I run the E District's St. Micheal's Church. We come to pray for the victims of this awful curse plaguing our society."  
".......Then what are you doing here?"  
"When Leeson told me about this miracle....I was a little reluctant...but here-" He held both paws out to his wife, one of which was holding a small black book. "This is truly a gift from above."  
He stepped into the room, but stopped when Marx growled and pinned his ears back.  
"Get your religious skins OUT!!," he growled, "She's been through enough as it is."  
".....I fully understand your concerns. But, I just wish to cleanse the young one to allow her heavenly soul to be purified. So she may be aloud to acend."  
"What the fu-? You know what? Nevermind. We're just fine. Thanks." He wrapped both arms around her. "I'm sure we'll be just fine."  
He never lost his calm demeanor and just blinked. "I'm sure we could come to an understanding."  
"SINNERS MUST REPENT!!"  
Marx scowled at both of them. Chris however walked over to the foot of the bed (despite the dragon baring his fangs) and opened the book he was holding.  
"Would you prefer to start with blessings or confess her sins? Our lord is very forgiving."  
He opened his mouth to yell at him....but a tall figure in the doorway stopped everything.  
"What is the meaning of this?"  
All three looked up to see the giant cheetah with Dr. Larson standing behind him. He narrowed his eyes at Leeson but turned his attention to Chris.  
"Christopher. I wasn't expecting you back here."  
He smiled. "Forgive the intrusion, but I had to see for myself if Leeson wasn't making a mistake when he noticed this lovely miracle."  
"Well, I'm sure the young couple appreciate the thought, but it's very late and I'm sure they both NEED to be left ALONE.....And for all we know, those could be just tattoos on those wings."  
There was an awkward silence.  
".......Of course. Perhaps it is a little early to assume anything. We SHOULD wait for further proof." He slowly closed the book and smiled at Marx. "So sorry for the disturbance. Please, feel free to come join us if you wish. Come Leeson."  
He slowly walked past the others with Leeson on his tail.  
"......Nutcases."  
"Now, now. They were only trying to help in their own way. Just be relieved Leeson went to Christopher instead of the press. The last thing we need is the hospital over run with reporters and paparazzi."  
Dr. Larson nodded. "Chris is more understanding, but that's not why we're here." He held up some papers Marx didn't notice before.  
"What's that?"  
"The results of the blood test we ran."  
"......A-And what does it say?"  
He looked down at the paper. "Well.....Her DNA is consistant of 82% with an artic fox."  
".....And the other twelve percent?"  
".......Unknown. It didn't match up with anything in our database. But, I can tell you these unknown genes were already a part of her and NOT spliced in."  
"So....this angel this isn't real?"  
He shrugged. "Not impossible, but highly unlikely. It's most likely she had some unknown avian or bird ancestors and was a late bloomer."  
".....Then what about the crosses on these wings?"  
"Most likely birthmarks."  
"......Does this mean we can go?"  
He looked at Zecharah who nodded. "Since there is no proof of anyone tampering with her DNA or otherwise.....She'll be released. But I would like to keep her until this Friday to make sure she recover from the major blood loos she went through."  
He only pulled her against him more.  
"You're welcome to come back during visiting hours as much as you like."  
"Thanks."


	13. Student's Thoughts

-The Next Morning at Z.P.A-  
It had been yesterday when the fight between the two snakes and k-9s had happened and word got around fast about what happened. Apparently what also happened with Zoey also went around.  
The five students were strictly told not to interact with the others for the rest of the school year or risk being expelled.   
"It's sure gotten real f**ked up around here lately." The reddish mammal leaned into his paw.  
"It's not that bad."  
He turned to his twin. "That's because you're staring at yer nerd crush."  
The one eyes mammal turned his eye towards him and smiled. "And that's bad? You stare at Cap all the time."  
He waved a paw. "Eh. That's different. She's my girl. Vikki ain't."  
"Not yet anyways."  
"Why don't you just go ask her out? I'm sure she'll like an emo, goth, edgy artist. Instead of watching her like a hawk."  
"All in good time."  
He snorted. "Sure. By the time that happens, she'll be married with kids. Whaddya think, Indy?"  
The purple fox looked at them.".....I Think it's rude to just stare at a girl for minutes on end without at least telling her." He jabbed at his food. "It'd be more polite to tell her in person."  
"HA! Told ya!"  
"Hellbent. Please calm yourself."  
"Hmm." The grey mammal leaned forward. "Little old fashioned, Indy."  
He stared at him. "Crossbones. My father is the Lt. Major and my mother is head of the other staff. Respect is part of my life."  
He held up both paws in defeat. "Ok. No need to get defensive."  
"Hmm." He went back to eating.  
"*snort* Mavric already hooked us up with his little cousins." He nudged the dragon next to him.  
He smiled shyly and rubbed his arm.  
"Are ya planning on asking Jamie out?" He shook his head. "Why not?"  
His hands made signing motions. 'My mothers doesn't like her father.'  
"Mr. Zechariah?"  
'Mr. Fabian. And those two don't let anyone near her.' He pointed a hand towards the three after signing. Hellbent leaned back to look at them.  
"......Oh yeah. The snowflake and his spotted kitten."  
"They never let anyone too close to the other," Indigo remarked.  
"Eh. They're nothing but stuck up snobs anyways. Mav can do much better."  
'But......She's really nice.....and cute.'  
"Dont' tell Jamie that." Crossbones gave him a warning look. "She hates that."  
'But it's true.'  
"Yeah. Be careful or she'll do you like she did Josslyn."  
"Mavric." Everyone turned to Indigo. "Take my advice....If you like someone, them tell her. Even though your mother and these two may disagree. If she doesn't return your feelings, then it's alright. Don't cling to something that won't happen.........And show respect for her dislikes."  
"Hey. I never said I hated her. Maybe Hellbent but not me."  
"HEY!"  
'How do you know this stuff?'  
"Ms. Jill trains me in more than battle. Besides....I've had experience with Miracle."  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
"He's looking at me again, isn't he?"  
"He only does it because he likes you.~"  
"Well, I would really like it if he stopped." The fox wolf pushed her glasses back up her snout.  
Her best friend smiled at her. "Then just tell him."  
"I did.......He thought it'd be funny to kiss me."  
Her friend burst out laughing and she shoved her.  
"It's NOT funny! He's such a weirdo!"  
"A weirdo with a thing for nerdy shy girls.~"  
"UGH! CAP!"  
The jackalope shifter burst into laughter at her friend's red face.  
"Could you two keep it down? I don't want to get in trouble."  
"Relax, Mirry. I doubt we'll get in trouble."  
The moth-dragon fluttered her wings before looking around the lunch area. "I don't know. Things have gotten really strange lately. I tried calling Uncle Marx.....but I guess he's too busy."  
"Well, I heard from Victor the studio's been under some real bad pressure to finish some movie series and ALOT of their staff is sick.......And didn't Uncle Fitch tell you to not talk to Uncle Marx?"  
She shrank back from her cousin's gaze. "Daddy....can be a little....overprotective."  
"I think the word you're lookin' for is prone to overeating."  
"......That, too. Uncle Marx isn't a bad person. Just dramatic. I also tried calling Aunt Juliet, but she didn't pick up."  
"Hmm. And Indigo's a big ol' teddy bear." She smirked at her cousin's red face. "I bet he's soft, too.~"  
"Cappuccino!"  
"HAHAHAHA!! Alright. I'll stop teasing you two. For now at least."  
RRRRRIIIIINNNGGGGG!!!!  
"EEP!!" Her wings snapped open after being startled by the bell......Which a couple others laughed at.  
"Eh. Lunch break's over. Back to prison."


	14. Producer's Return

The time which he got back from the hospital(which had been that morning) everything had unexpectedly gotten ALMOST straightened out around the studio.  
The Director, who was fed up with all the 'excuses' for delays, had personally cleaned the dressing room Juliet was found in and threatened to not only fire anyone who didn't get their job done right, but report them to Mr. Castello and have him fire anyone he saw fit.   
It's safe to sat that everyone overworked themselves as to not deal with the angry serpent. It was considered a relief when the tired dragon came trudging back into the studios.  
To Victor mostly. The young dragon had been in a state of worry and fear since the discovery of Ms. Foxor's limp body.

"S-So, how's the wife?" He struggled to carry the heavy stack of papers next to the older dragon.  
Marx, who was struggling with his own papers, gave a groan. Thankfully all his paperwork had been done by his asistants and besides all the mixed scripts and documents in their arms that needed to be organized and his regular work around the studios.......There wasn't much to do.  
"Fine. The doc said she can come home Friday."  
"That's three days from now. Isn't too long a wait."  
"Easy for you to say. Strawberry's just fine."  
They walked some more in silence.  
"..........Mr. Castello asked about you yesterday."  
"For what?"  
"He wanted to know where you were. I told him you were taking one of our employees to the hospital."  
".....Good."  
They stopped by a door before he wrapped his tail around it's knob. Turning right, it swung open and they stepped inside. Trudging over to his desk, he plopped the stack of papers on it with Victor following suit.  
"I-Is there anything I can do for you, Sir?"  
"No. The work will help me focus on something else besides the hospital, but if you could go find Gustav that'd be fantastic," he said before plopping down in his seat.  
"O-Of course!'' He backed away and grabbed the door. "I-I'll go get him right away."  
The door was slammed shut and Marx sighed before reaching up a hand to rub his face.  
"I'm getting too old for this."  
The door was suddenly reopened and Victor slunk his head back in.  
"Um....By the way, Sir. Y-You're neice called."  
"......Alright. Thanks for telling me."  
"S-Sure. A-Anytime." He closed the door again.  
His tired eyes looked up at the two stacks of paper.".........*sigh* Let's get this over with."  
The other dragon sighed and took a couple steps back from the door.......Before turning away and walking down the hall mumbling to himself.  
"Stupid, stupid, stupid. Can't stop stuttering like an idiot. What would people think!?"  
"I think it's cute.~"  
"EEP!!" He whirled around only to be met by a taller figure smiling at him. "STRAWBERRY!! WTF?!"  
The moth-fox smiled wider. "I heard you passing by and I just couldn't resist.~"  
"W-Well, it's not funny!" His eyes widened when she giggled and got up from leaning on the doorway. When she got close enough, she leaned down until their faces was inches apart.  
He gulped and his ears went back.  
"You are the cutest little thing.~" Wrapping her arms around him in a hug. He made a flustered squawking noise and froze. She cooed. "I can imagine how cute our children will be.~"  
"Strawberry! S-Seriously stop. This is embarrassing. Besides, I have to find Gustav for my boss."  
She released him partially but still kept him pressed against her side. "He's in a meeting with my manager and some others at the moment."  
"When will they be done? Mr. Marx REALLY needs him."  
She shrugged. "Not too sure. They've been talking about arranging this big carpet event for the new movie The Director is putting together. Y'know? This 'Death's Tears' love saga has become pretty popular."  
It was true. The popular spy series had gotten pretty popular since the first movie. It was sort of like a james bond anti hero thing. With some of the most famous people working the scenes and roles. Each movie had different female actresses playing the different popular roles and love interests in the movies. Celestina, Quivor, Baltimore, Kayla, and a few other big names. This movie was gonna be the last in the series with Strawberry playing the beautiful but smart female henchman. She was the obvious choice considering they've been using famous people in the movies.  
"Yeah. But, Mr. Marx really needs help sorting the papers."  
She raised a brow. "Can't you help him?"  
"I don't know any of the scripts. They were written by him and The Director. Only Gustav knows how they put scripts together."  
She hummed and began to steer him back to her dressing room. "Well, you'll have to wait for the meeting to be over. Til then, you can stay with me.~"  
"B-B-But, aren't you busy?"  
"Now, I am.~"  
"D*mmit, Berry!"


	15. Family Matters

The rest of the school day had gone by pretty normally, save for Indigo almost starting a fight with Caramel over teasing Miracle. But other than that, it went pretty well.  
The group of seven children made their way down the cold street with Indigo's coat around her.  
"Hey, Indy. Ain't ya cold?"  
"Not really. Spending most of my life in H*ll has made me quite resistant to extreme climates. Besides, it's nice to experience something other than blistering heat. I'd rather have Miracle warm."  
The small moth-dragon gave him a shy look. "You don't have to do that."  
An arm wrapped around her and she was pressed against Indigo's side. She could feel the gears working in his body. He nuzzled her head making her squeak and duck further into her scarf. Her cousin wolf whistled gave him a shove.  
"Cap! Don't encourage him!"  
She smirked at her red face and chuckled. "Relax, Mirry. He could've just kissed ya publicly."  
"Yeah! Like this!"  
She made a squeak sound and turned away from her cousin that was now randomly kissing her boyfriend. Indigo raised a brow and pulled Miracle closer away from the kissing couple.  
"Really you two? Honestly. Have some dignity."  
Behind him Crossbones smiled and turned to the smaller mammal. "Hey, Vikki. Want me to hold ya so you don't feel left out?~"  
She puffed up her cheeks but didn't answer. This made him smile and slink an arm around her. This made her squeak and give him a scowl.  
"I never said yes!"  
"But you never said no.~"  
Indigo gave a disgruntled look at Mavric who shrugged. "The Terror Twins are at it again."  
"Hey! I resent that comment!"  
They walked a little while more before stopping in front of a small house, of which Cappuccino briskly marched up to, threw open the door, and stuck her head in.  
"MOM! DAD! We're home and we brought some friends!"  
"OH! That's great! We have something for Mirry!"  
She gestured for them to follow her in before stepping through the door. The others followed shortly after. Upon reaching the door, they took off the extra winter clothes and shuffled into the living room.  
The house was warm with a fire going in the corner. A figure was crouched in front of the fireplace with his back turned to them. He cocked his head to the side before taking a breath and blowing out a flame into the pit. He turned his head and smiled at them.  
"Hey, Kids. Was school good?"  
Cappuccino rushed over to him and hugged his side. Making him chuckle and roughly rub between her antlers.  
"Fine, Dad. We were gonna head over to the movies after some work if that's alright."  
"Sure. As long as you all get it done." He turned to the other six kids. He gave a narrowed look at Hellbent and Indigo. "And as long as those boys keep their hands to themselves."  
"Dad!"  
"I assure you, Sir. I regard your niece with the upmost respect. I'd never stoop so low." He glanced at Hellbent. "And I'm sure my friend feels the same way about Cappuccino."  
"Yeah! What he said."  
"Besides. Mavric's coming with us."  
"....." He glanced at his nephew then at Miracle before looking back at her."........Hmm."  
"Babe." He whirled around to the smaller person. She walked past him. "Don't be so overbearing."  
"Hmph....Fine. But you better be back before midnight."  
Miracle smiled and noticed Mavric staring at something. "......What are you looking at?"  
'Aunt Eve's talking to someone on the phone. And she looks upset.'  
Curious, she leaned back and indeed saw their aunt talking to someone. She glanced up and froze when she saw them looking at her. She murmered something into the phone before looking at Miracle.  
"Mirry. Could you come here?"  
"......" She slowly shuffled forward. "Am I in trouble?"  
"No, Honey. It's Fitch."  
"......Daddy?" She walked over to her aunt before taking the phone and holding it to her ear.".....Hello?"  
Her Uncle and aunt glanced at each other behind her.  
"Hi, Daddy! Are you and Mom coming to-?"  
There was a pause and Mavric glanced at their aunt and uncle. They continued to watch her with guilty faces.  
"What do you mean you're not coming?!"  
Everyone stopped and stared at her now.  
"But that's what you said last time!" I can come to you......But it's been two months........THAT doesn't count! You were only here for an hour!"  
Indigo slowly stood up from the couch he previously sat at, and gave Cappuccino a knowing look. She nodded confirming his suspictions.  
"You always say that." She turned around and forcefully gave Eve back her phone before stepping around her into her cousin's waiting hug.  
Eve gave them a look before holding the phone back up to her ear. "You still there?........No. What was so important that you had to cancel your trip?"  
A voice came through. "Something involving family came up I need to deal with."  
"Are those glasses not enough for you to see? SHE IS your family. Why can't Misk come at least?"  
"I want them both to be somewhere safe while I take care of something within the Districts."  
"How long will it take?"  
"A couple days at most."  
"The stay here while you do it, and bring the wife along. It's safe here."  
"Eve. I appreciate the offer, but-"  
"NO, FITCH!! No more buts!" Everyone leaned back from her yelling. "I am NOT her mom! Hatchet is NOT her dad! If your work is more d*m important than her, then maybe you shouldn't be a parent!"  
Silence came from both ends with everyone staring at her.  
"I'm about to go all child services on your a$$! So what are we gonna do?......" They saw her nod her head. "Better. I'll have the guest room set up for you two. And maker sure to BE HERE and BRING HER MOM." She gave the phone a click before turning back to them with a smile. "Good news. They'll be here soon."  
"REALLY?!"  
She nodded. "Yep! It's nothing we couldn't talk over."  
Hatchet turned his head. "See, Kids? This is why you don't make a bunny angry."  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
He sighed and placed the pay phone back in the receiver.  
"Fitch. Is everything ok?"  
He turned his green eyes to his mate. ".......We'll have to go back to the cabin and pack a few things."  
"Why?"  
"We have a train to catch, and a long journey to make."


	16. Studio Life Part 1

The old clock ticked away on the wall as papers slowly shuffled on the desk as the tired dragon went though them.  
Like he had hoped, the work took his mind off the events that happened within the last two and a half days ago. But the picture frame in the corner wasn't helping much either with the beautiful smiling face always looking at him. He thought about turning it around.....but decided against it after his worrying half got the best of him and left it be so he could see some form of her to ease his restless mind.  
"..................." His ears perked up at the approaching footsteps and looked back down at the papers. It was most likely Victor or Gustav. About time too. It was getting late.  
He didn't hesitate to answer the knock at the door.  
"Come in and make it quick."  
He didn't look up when the door opened and closed and footsteps approached his desk.  
"It's about time you got here. I was wondering when you were gonna show up."  
"How did you know I was bringing you coffee?"  
He paused......and looked up at the owner of the feminine voice.  
"Oh.....Hello, Susie."  
The young possum smiled at him. "Thank god you're back." She reached a hand over to the many coffee cups she was carrying.  
He watched her place it on his desk before grabbing it. "Thank you.....Was it really that bad?"  
"Terrible. Ms. Director didn't let up until almost everything was finished......She's still on about those scripts."  
"I know......Believe me. I know. *sigh*........Hey. Shouldn't you be working for Strawberry?"  
"Uh.......Ms. Blonde's busy with Victor at the moment."  
He nearly choked on his drink. "Victor?! I sent him to get Gustav half an hour ago!"  
"Well.......he's in a meeting right now. They're preparing for the red carpet premeire the end of this month. Remember?"  
"......I thought that was next month."  
"Mr. Castello moved the date. He said something about enough delays and not enough money. I think he's hoping this new movie will help straighten out the studio's chaos or something."  
"........" He carefully placed the cup back down and reached a hand up to run through his hair. "Great......That means more work for me."  
She shrugged before turning around. "Well.....I wish you luck."  
"Thanks. I'm gonna need it."  
She paused. "Oh....By the way, how's your wife?"  
This made him freeze.  
".......Why do you ask?"  
"Word got around pretty fast."  
".....She's....fine. Just some bloodloss and back problems."  
She nodded. "I hope she gets better soon."  
"Thanks."  
He watched her leave and slowly close the door behind her. Slowly untensing his body, he relaxed back in his office chair.  
It was gonna be hard to explain when she returned.  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
It was a little awkward walking in on her boss with her smaller boyfriend in her lap. Poor Victor was redder than a tomato but Strawberry didn't seem to mind as she beconned Susie in with a smile.  
"I see you brought the drinks I asked for."  
"Uh.....Yeah." She eyed Victor who seemed frozen with very noticeable lip stick marks all over his face. "......Um....Is he ok?" She pointed a hand at him.  
Strawberry waved a paw. "He's just fine." She wrapped both arms around him and pulled him closer to her body. "He's just my little cute prince charming.~"  
Victor made a flustered sqwauk sound and Susie rose a brow.  
"Oooook. Should I just leave these here then?"  
"That'd be fine. You go have yourself a break. I still have to wait for Sammy boy to get back anyways. That'll give me more bonding time with Vicky.~''  
"Eep!"  
She carefully set the drinks on the vanity before backing out of the awkward situation and closing the door behind her.  
".......*sigh* My crazy bosses will be the death of me."  
"Death who?"  
She flinched and looked down. Yellow eyes and big fangs stared up at her.  
"Oh.....It's just you."  
The small child giggled and hugged the bear in her arms. "I'm playing with someone!"  
"Oh.......I don't think your brother's around."  
She shook her head. "Samson's with Daddy and Uncle Castello waiting for Winter." She began to skip away and Susie walked beside her.  
"Where is Winter? I haven't seen him around lately."  
"He had a fight with Miss Baldi-more's son. Mommy says Uncle Castello's working on something important."  
"I see." She met the serpent family a few times since she practically worked for them. She saw her twin a couple times. The six year old feline seemed a lot more mature for his age. ".....Who are you playing with? Your Uncle?"  
She for a fact had A LOT of Uncles. Two from her father's side and eight from her mother.  
She giggled again and stopped. "No."  
She stopped, too. "Who then?"  
She smiled, showing off her unusual large fangs and pointed behind her. "Him."  
She rose a brow but froze as a growl suddenly emanated from behind her. It suddenly cut off into a snake hiss as red eyes sized her up and down. The child stared back unfazed as she slowly turned around....  
And something lunged at her with a demonic sceech.


	17. Studio Life Part 2

She screamed. The child screamed too but started laughing histarically. Without thinking, she grabbed the child and belined it down the hallway.  
"What the-? H-Hey! Wait!"  
She didn't stop. The child continued to laugh in her arms.  
She looked back once. Nothing was there. When she looked forward......She rammed into something hard and someone grabbed her shoulders. She screamed and tried to get away but whoever was holding her was stronger.  
"Hey! It's me!" A hand grabbed her face, forcing her to look up. "IT'S ME!!"  
She froze.......before a sudden movement across his face made him let go.  
"OW!!"  
"You big jerk!"  
The taller boy looked down at her with a scowl and rubbed his cheek.  
"What was that for?! I was just playin'."  
"You didn't have to scare me!"  
"Bow liked it."  
"Can we do it again?"  
"NO!" She gently placed her down.  
"Ah! Why not?"  
"I don't like being scared out of my mind," she huffed and turned to stomp away.  
"Sue! Susie!" There was a rush of cold air as someone magically popped in front of her, making her stop. "I was only playing with Bow. I didn't mean to scare you." Her scrunched up snout made his fuzzy ears go back. "Sorry."  
"......Don't do it again......Hannah."  
It was his turn to frown. "You know I hate that nickname."  
"How about Hans? Hanny? Able? ......Mothy.~" She giggled seeing his face turn red. Even more so when Bow giggled behid her.   
His face burnt a red that almost matched his eyes. "S-Stop that! You know I hate those names!"   
She giggled and leaned closer, making him gulp and lean back. She booped his nose and giggled.   
"Ok, Hannibal.~"  
"You're...........You're.....Hmmmmm!.....*sigh* Impossible." He felt a tugging on his pants and glanced down to see Bow looking up at him. She made a grabby motion with her hand and he sighed before reaching down and picking her up.  
She giggled and jabbed a hand into his red chest fluff. "You're so fluffy!"  
This made Susie giggle more and Hannibal flushed a darker red. "I didn't know you were good with kids."  
".......I like kids." He glanced between them. ".....Is that good?"  
"I think it's cute.~"  
"Um......Really?"  
She giggled and leaned closer. "Mmm hmm. I think all boys should have that trait.~''  
He gulped and leaned back.  
"Oh, get a room you two."  
He gave an eep and spun with a growl.  
"Uncle Nicolo!," Bow happily shouted.  
The tall cat stared at them. "Hannibal. She's here."  
".....Oh.....Here." He carefully placed Bow in her arms before stepping away. "It's important I see her. Sorry Bow."  
The much taller cat gave them a blank look before turning and following the hybrid boy. Susie blinked before looking down at Bow.  
"........." She held up her bear. "Noodle wants to know if you'll play with us."  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
Brisk footsteps walked down the hallway as they came closer to their destination.  
Stopping in front of a door, they gave it a swing without another thought.  
"Strawberry! Great news! I-"  
He stopped as dark green stared up at him. "......Uh...." He gave a nervous smile. "H-Hi, Sam. Hehe......H-How was the meeting?"  
......He blinked. "Fantastic. And with all that lipstick on you, I'd say you had a decent time as well."  
"S-SAM!!" His face bloomed a bright red as his brother laughed.  
"Sammy, Dear. Are you forgetting something?"  
"Oh, yes! Thanks for reminding me! Strawberry, get ready because this premeire will be the biggest of your career!"


	18. Studio Life Part 3

Yellow eyes scanned the room silently as he stood by the desk.  
Behind him was his mother, who also stood silent, and his many uncles. They acted like body guards protecting their king. Which wouldn't be too far from the truth, since his Uncle Castello was head of the studios and their family business. Even more so after his grandfather passes on.  
He took a breath and had to repress the urge to cough. He learned long ago that he must get accustomed to many things in his life. His family's smoking and dirty habits was one of them.  
"..........Uncle Castello."  
The snake slowly looked at him. Cigar smoke shrouding his face.  
"......Wouldn't it have been wiser for me to stay with Winter during this time?"  
".......No. Bow needs to be escorted to and from school. Until Winter returns, you will obey your mother and do as you're told."  
"Yes, Uncle."  
"Speaking of which." A head poked out from behind his uncle. Many eyes peered down at him. "Did you finish your homework?"  
"Yes, Father. Everyday."  
"Ribbon. Shut your mouth. I have no desire to hear your foolish fights right now."  
The multi eyes serpent gave him a look, but did back off into his original spot. His Uncle went back to his papers without another word.  
He learnt quickly that his Uncle preferred absolute silence when working......Or whenever he was angry. Which was a lot ever since his Aunt Solstice was diagnosed with whatever illness had been going around.  
A sudden knock at the door snapped him out of his thoughts.  
"Come in."  
The office door opened and in stepped who he recognized as one of his Uncle's employees.  
"Guten tag."  
".....Well, what is it?"  
He gave a scowl. "Ze Director vanted me to come give you an update concerning the productions. Everything has been put back on track but there will be some delays with ze scripts all scrambled."  
"Fix it."  
"We're working on that right now."  
"Then why are you just standing there?"  
The purple man clearly scowled, but backed towards the door. He opened it, but stopped when a white face stood in the doorway. He blinked but soon side stepped aside for them to get through.  
"..........Hello, Father."  
"Winter."  
The small kitten immediately scampered over to him and stood next to his older cousin. But didn't count on another person being with him.  
"Samson!"  
Two arms wrapped around his skinnier form. His fur bristled and he wriggled in her hold.  
"BOW! Let go!"  
His twin giggled and hugged him tighter.  
"She'll be spending more time with us. Especially you while I serve out my punishment."  
His jaw dropped. "WHAT?!"  
His blue eyes narrowed. "With this crisis, our enemies will look for any chance to take advantage of us. We need to cover any openings."  
He groaned making bow giggle and snuggle into his fur. "Uuuuuh. Fine.......What about Aunt Solstice?"  
"Antonio-" All looked at his Uncle "-will be tasked with watching her. YOU worry about what you're told to do. Am I clear?"  
His ears went back. "......Yes, Uncle."  
"Good."  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
The silence was almost deathening between them as the two sat there shuffling through the many papers.  
".........You have been awfully quiet."  
The older one froze.  
"I know things have been very stressful for you lately, especially with Ms. Foxor's wardrobe malfunction, but I don't ever remember you being this quiet before."  
The dragon looked up at him slowly.  
".........If it's about your wife, I'm sorry about what happened, but you need to stop acting so dreary. For her sake if not your own."  
"........Easy for you to say. That boyfriend of yours is just fine."  
He scowled. "Vell. Pardon me for making some attempt to make you happy."  
"........*sigh* Look. I appreciate the attempt. I just.......I need to get this done. Castello is right up my a$$. So instead of telling me to stop stressing, maybe some help and actual work could be done around here!"  
He looked back at the papers with a scowl, and the purple snake smiled. He had gotten him to start talking which would lead to him ranting about his anger instead of keeping it in. It was better to have him rant and take his mind off his problems. It helped him work better.  
He continued to mumble incoherent nothings as he grabbed paper after paper before skimming through it and putting it into one of the two piles.  
"I'm glad you think so."  
"Oh....Be quiet and organize."  
"As you wish."


	19. Studio Life Part 4

"You can do ze rest tomorrow. There's no need to rush anything."  
His eyes watched the tired dragon continue to shuffle through the papers. They had managed to sort both the different scripts into two smaller piles, but both scripts were still unorganized and needed to be looked though and put back together.Which could easily take another whole day by itself.  
He shook his head. "N-No. I gotta....gotta get it done b-before Castello sees it."  
His vision clouded a bit before he shook his head and glared back at the papers in his hands. It didn't go unnoticed by the purple snake who rose a brow.  
".......You're suffering from little sleep and stress. Why don't you let me finish these?"  
"........Why?"  
"Do I really need to list every reason vhy you passing out from sleep would be a bad idea? And vhat would happen if Mr. Castello or Ms. Director found you?"  
The dragon froze and his eyes widened before slowly turning to hm. He knew very well how much he feared their two bosses, and even though using his fear against him seemed like a real jerk move......The way he was swaying and the fact that the trash bin was (literally) over flowing with coffee cups.....I'd say this was a special exception.  
".....Are you sure you can h-handle this?"  
He smiled. "Jah. It'll be no problem. Like putting the pages of a book back together."  
"That's reassuring."  
He felt someone get up next to him and walk behind him. His chair was pulled backwards and he felt two hands hook under his arms and force him onto his tired legs. Blinking his eyes, he turned to the purple snake that smiled.  
"Don't worry about it. You should worry about getting home and resting up." He placed a hand on his shoulder and carefully guided him from behind the desk and to the door. Pausing to reach over and open it. "Will you be able to get home ok?"  
He waved a hand. "I'm tired. Not drunk."  
He chuckled. "I suppose you're right. But still....It's always better to be safe than sorry. Especially in these times."  
He gave a dry chuckle. "You don't have to tell me twice."  
After bidding him good bye, the dragon slowly trudged down the hall. Most workers had already gone home for the night, but knowing his superiors, they'd probably make some stay and prepare for all the work for the next day. As the 'BIG' project had been forced closer than originally planned.  
He stretched out his back making the bones crack. His tail being dragged on the floor. When was the last time he got any good sleep?.....Probably a hundred years ago, BEFORE all the drama in his life started.  
Then again......He probably wouldn't have gotten a name for himself, got rich, or gotten married. Sometimes he wondered if the pros weighed out the cons in his life. But when he compared his life to say Castello's.......he could consider himself lucky.  
Sure, he got mixed up with the wrong crowd, but he wasn't the center of attention for any mafia groups. He doesn't have to worry about possibly getting hits put on his head or getting arrested for doing illegal activity (despite being A PART of a mafia, he really didn't DO anything in the mafia).......Well, anything really illegal. He mostly got stuck with the huge stack of paper work.  
Of course, he'll probably outlive the serpent family so there was still hope for-  
"MARX!!"  
"EEP!!"  
He whirled around alert at the voice and his stomach dropped at the angry woman storming towards him.  
"Hi, Quiver." He gave a nervous smile. "Uh.....H-How's the movie going?"  
His eyes widened as the taller woman got in his face. "Don't you try me, you spineless lizard! I've been waiting ALL F**KING DAY for those scripts you were supposed to get back to us!"  
He gulped and leaned back a little. This woman could intimidate the Don himself, which was actually a big deal.  
"I-I'll get to you by t-tomorrow. Hehe. I-I'm sure of it."  
She narrowed her eyes. "They. Better. Be. I DON'T have time to deal with your petty hide." She jabbed him repeatedly in the chest. "This movie is gonna be the last of the series and I will NOT let some tiny pathetic excuse of a so called 'dragon' ruin it for me....You get any of that or do I need to find another way of getting it through your head?"  
He gulped again. "C-C-Crystal clear."  
She eyed him for a few more seconds before leaning back up to her full height. "Good. Make SURE I get them tomorrow morning. SHARP."  
She side stepped around the smaller dragon and stormed away. Leaving him frozen.  
"........F-F*ck my life."  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
The papers slowly shuffled on the wooden desk as blue eyes scanned over them.  
"Winter, can we play now?"  
".......No, Bow. I must finish my studies. I'm already behind with my punishment taking up my time. If Father found out I'm falling behind even in one class, he'll be most displeased."  
"Oh......" The younger serpent looked at her brother. "Will you play with me?"  
The cat gave a tired groan. "It's too late to be playing."  
"Awwwww!"  
"Samson's right." He turned his head to look at them. "It's getting late, and we all have school to attend tomorrow. Take care of your hygiene needs and go to bed."  
"Aw! But why?"  
The older serpent gave them a look. "Because. You are under MY authority now. You do as you're told, and I run a tight scheduale. I expect you to keep your body clean and your education your top priority at this point in life."  
Samson could feel his ears go back. While Winter was MUCH more nicer than his Uncle, he had to remember.....He was STILL Castello's son. And he wasn't afraid to prove it."  
"Can you read me a bedtime story?"  
.......Apparently his sister wasn't so easily scared.  
"......*sigh* Fine. Go take care of your needs then change."  
She gave a happy, girly squeal and took off without another word.  
"......Samson. You, too. And make sure she actually does it."  
"Yes, Winter........Winter?"  
"What?"  
"You're not planning on making Bow a part of our 'business'........Are you?"  
".......No. She'll be STAYING with us and learning to focus more on her health and education......But I believe it'd be best if she was kept away from that. Do I make myself clear?"  
"Yes, Winter."


	20. Studio Life Part 5

The night had been peaceful compared to the past month. Mostly due to the fact that the Director had forced what little staff was left to pick up the slack or face the wrath of Mr. Castello. And NOBOBY wanted to face the already feared snake after what happened to Ms. Solstice. The poor doe lady was the complete opposite of her serpent consort. Gentle and kind where he was deemed cold and heartless.  
Some like Hannibal and Mr. Ribbon had said Winter had inherited some of her qualities, but she'd never seen it. She had thought of asking Winter a couple times about how his parents got together, but decided it was none of her business.  
The studio workers had (by some miracle) caught up with the behind work beyond some scattered scripts that was currently being organized, and a few less background actors. Which Castello easily fixed by having some actors play more than one part with make up to make them look different.  
She was one of the lucky few who actually got to go home at the end of the day and rest. Unlike poor Victor or Gustav that was forced to work more to avoid another delay. Especially since the big showcasing had been moved to the end of that month.Which only gave them three weeks.  
But, she was lucky. After Strawberry had given her the night off, she happily trudged down the darkened hallways to her awaiting street. She had hoped to run into Hannibal before she left, but she guessed his mysterious sister was still visiting him. No big deal. She wouldn't want to get between family.  
When she stepped outside, it was still could as it was still winter and just starting to melt away. But, she was pretty used to it by now.  
What she didn't expect was the familiar face waiting on the curb......  
"Caramel?"  
The female turned at someone saying her name and made eye contact with the possum. She smiled and gestured for her to join her. She happily obliged and came towards her.  
"What are you doing out so late?" Two fangs poked out from her smile.  
"Heading home for the night. You?"  
"Waiting for my cab. It's too cold to walk."  
"Yeah. It should start getting warmer soon."  
"Hopefully." She shifted her weight and her hooves shifted in the leftover slush. "I don't take too kindly to the cold."  
"I kinda like it. It beats being stuck having fur in Summer."  
"Yeah. I guess."  
A small pause followed.  
".........Soooo.....How's Mr. Jolly?"  
She froze before coughing and looked away. "H-He's fine. As smiling and .....jolly as ever. It's always nice to have someone smiling when times are rough."  
"Yeah......Have ya told him yet?"  
"......" She gave her a look. "What are you talking about?"  
"Don't play dumb. We both know you like him.~"  
Jolly, being the happy go lucky man he was, was very sweet and easy on the eyes. Even she had to admit that. Many would find him a fairly attractive person. Especially Caramel.  
Being Jolly's PA gave her the most time with him. It was no surprise she started crushing on him.  
".....O-Of course I like him. He's a very nice boss." She shifted her weight nervous. "Besides.....E-Even if I did like him like that........Which I don't....I doubt he'd return any."  
"I dunno. You never know til ya try."  
"Hmph. Well, what about YOU? You like anyone?"  
It was Susie's turn to freeze. She slowly turned to Caramel who smirked. She coughed and her cheeks turned light pink.  
"Well, kinda. He's pretty cute, and nice to be around."  
"Hmm. Anyone I know?"  
"I don't think so. But he loves kids."  
Hannibal was fairly good with Bow, usually being her playmate if Winter wasn't or making Samson. That's pretty rare in males. Or at least where she was from.  
"Oh. My ride's here."  
Turing left, they saw a pair of lights coming down the otherwise dark road. The vechicle began to slow down until it stopped in front of them. The engiene hummed as the drier's window rolled down and a K-9 stuck her head out.  
"One of ya'll called out services?"  
"Yeah." Reaching a paw out, she opened the passenger door, but paused and looked back at Susie. "Do you want a ride? You live a block away from me, so I could drop you saw off near there."  
She smiled. "I'd like that.....Thanks."  
They didn't notice the red eyes watching them from the window.  
"So THAT'S the girl you always talk of. Mmmhmhmhm. She has real delicious thighs.~"  
"Oh, be quiet!"  
"AHAHAHA! You should talk to the little treat.~"  
"I......can't. She'd never go for some failed experiment."  
".........You'd be surprised with her reaction."  
"What's that supposed to mean?"  
"Hehe. You'll see.~"


	21. Hospital Calls

By the time he got home and flopped face first onto his bed, it was almost midnight. Every fiber of his being was begging him to close his eyes and just rest.......but his worries had other ideas.  
He really tried sleeping. Really he did. But something that had been nagging at him got the better of him.  
With a groan, he flopped over onto his back and reached a hand over to the night stand by the bed. Grabbing the phone, he pushed a series of numbers, held it up to his ear, and waited.  
A few rings echoed before there was a click and voice.  
"*sigh* E District Health Center. Do you have an emergency?," asked a bored voice.  
"Um....I'm actually calling about a patient."  
"*sigh* Sir. Our doctors are working around the clock 24/7 to do all we can. I assure you all our patients are fine."  
"......." He wondered how long she practiced that speech. "No. She's not one of THOSE patients. She suffered a.......'accident' and is supposed to be recovering. I want to talk to her."  
There was a groan and some noises as if someone was moving around.  
"You couldn't have come or called during visiting hours?"  
"I had to work ALL DAY, Lady. Now, will you so kindly put her on?"  
"Look. She's probably asleep, and you should really keep better track of time."  
"That's my WIFE!", he shouted sitting up, "And do you what 'had to work all day' means?"  
"I don't think I made myself clear. The doctors are BUSY and it's LATE. You can visit or call during visiting hours. Have a good night."  
"WHAT?! Wait, wait, wait!!"  
There was a click signaling she hung up. He held the phone from his ear s it echoed and gave it a scowl.  
"Rude much?"  
He stared at it for a little longer before an came to him. Punching a few more buttons, he once again held it up to his ear. A few rings were heard.  
He had literally NO idea if it would work or not, but it was worth a try. Like before, it continued to ring until another click sounded out. His ears twitched and body froze.  
"Hello?," a soft voice asked.  
"He visibly relaxed and a sigh escaped his throat. "Juju?"  
If he could see her, he would've seen the small smile on her face. "Honey. You alri-?"  
"Did the religious nuts come back?! Did anyone touch you?! Are you ok there?! I'll come right over and get you if I have too!"  
On the other side of the line, the fox held the phone away from her sensitive ears. She blinked her tired eyes. Looking back at it, she slowly held it back to her ear.  
"Marx. You must've be so loud. You might wake someone up."  
"......Y-You're right. Someone might see you, a-and who know what they'll do."  
He continued his rambling and she rolled her eyes good naturedly. Marx was a good husband, but he wasn't the best at handling really stressful situations.  
"Marx."  
"Yes?!" His attention immediately shifted hearing her voice.  
"Baby. Calm down."  
".......Yeah. Yeah. You're right. I-I should really come and get you."  
She shook her head. "Honey. You're overreacting again. I'm perfectly fine. Nothing's happened."  
There was a pause.  
"........I dunno. I got a bad feeling about all this, a-and I'm usually right."  
"Nothing's happened."  
"NOT YET. B-But what if those nutjobs blab about your wings or whatever those things are? Or what if Castello finds out?"  
"Castello?"  
He gave off a whine. "He's......keeping his wife there. And Nicholas is watching her."  
That would make sense. Being the wife of the Don made her a very likely target. Having one of Salem's brothers watch her seemed like the safer route. Especially since she had no way of fighting back.  
"If one of them sees you, we're history."  
"What's the worst that could happen?"  
Another pause.  
".....What's the worst that could happen?! Let's see. Besides the obvious case of Leeson tryin' to 'cleanse' or convert you....What about paparazzi? Hmm. Your 'accident' was already in the papers."  
"Does anyone know?"  
"........Not exactly. Everyone thinks your body caved in on itself because the costume's mechanical wings malfunctioned......Or something like that. Only Victor know. B-B-But if someone real bad found out.....What then?"  
"....Ok. I see your point. But I don't think me popping out wings makes me angelic. Dr. Larson did say it was more likely I have some avian ancestors."  
".................Maybe. But....people really look for some miracle in bad times. I don't want you to be the miracle they try to force to work."  
"I know. Don't worry about me. Get some sleep. You need it."  
"A-Alright........I love you."  
"I love you, too. Now get some rest. You'll see me Friday."  
There was another click signaling she hung up. He slowly took the phone from his ear and gave it a look.  
It was gonna be a long next two days.  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
The rattle and shaking of the train had slowed down once they entered within the city limits. He pulled the sleeping form of his life closer to himself as the train continued on.  
"Attention passengers. Next stop. Mothern Station on E District's city lines. I repeat. Mothern Station. Thank you, " a voice boomed over the speakers.  
His green eyes gazed out the window where he could make out the suberb buildings slowly turning to ones in a city.  
".....Finally."


	22. School Stuff Part 1

Another day. Another adventure.  
Or at least that's what her best friend always said. She always had more confidence than herself, but she wasn't a wimp either. She was more like the quiet unfortunate nerdy girl.  
She was shoved awake when someone shook her.  
"Wake up, Sweetheart! Time for school!"  
She groaned but shifted under the covers and poked her snout out. She was met with a blue blurry face. Something metal was suddenly pressed to her face. Her vision straightened out and a grey face smiled at her.  
"C'mon precious. Time to get up."  
She groaned but another nudge made her sit up.  
"Come on, Sleepyhead. You have friends waiting for you."  
"Cappuccino and Miracle."  
She was nudged again. "Come on. Let's go."  
"Fine, fine." She groggly pulled the sheets back and got up.  
It didn't take too long for her to do the normal morning routine of brushing her fur and fangs and headed downstairs......but not before stopping to look at the bite marks on her shoulder. Staring at the mirror, she slowly raised a hand to her shoulder.  
She could still remember the accident that put her in the hospital. The face of the driver that showed no emotion as he ran the red light. The pain she felt when the metal hit her.  
.......And the red eyes of the monster that mocked her.   
The following week, the driver had been found......dead. Cause of death? Bloodloss from a gash on his back exactly where his car hit her. Of course, her whole family was questioned, but since there was no proof of any involvement. They were cleared. Of course, she never told anyone about the monster. But her gut told her that her father and uncle knew. From the weird looks they both gave whenever they saw the scars.  
"VIKKI!!"  
She snapped out of her flashback fantasy and quickly pulled her sleeve back up.  
"Coming!" Grabbing her bag, she slung it over her shoulders and exited the room.  
Her father was in the kitchen looking at some papers and her mother was gone when she came down.  
"Jeej is gonna be at a party tonight, Sweetums. And I'm working late again. I want you to stay at a friend's tonight."  
"Ok." That was fine by her. She hated being alone in the dark. "I can stay with Cappuccino."  
"That'll work. This new action move is bleeding me dry.....Oh. Your friend is waiting outside." The older fox pointed at the door. "Don't be late for school."  
"I won't." Giving him a smile, she made a beeline for the door.  
She only made it down the steps when she stopped and stared at the person who awaited her.  
"......Oh, no."  
The familiar grey mammal was leisurely standing there with his hands in his jacket pocket. Upon seeing her, he smiled and waved. She inwardly groaned. Great. Just great. She had to deal with Crossbones's antics today. She was REALLY not in the mood right now.  
She walked down the patch leading to the sidewalk. Trying not to look too disappointed.  
"Morning," he greeted.  
"Where's Cappuccino?"  
He shrugged. "Probably already at the busstop. My bro left me stranded for her, so I guess you're my walking buddy today."  
".......*sigh* Fine. Let's go." She passed him. She heard him follow not too far behind and came up to walk beside her. Still smiling.  
"So, how'd ya sleep?"  
"Fine."  
"Hmm. Hungry?"  
"No."  
"I mean, I have some energy bars if ya skipped breakfest."  
"No, thanks."  
She kept giving small answers in hopes he'd get the hint and leave alone, but he insisted on talking to her. She continued giving small answers but that only seemed to encourage him to keep talking.  
"Why do you think everyone's getting sick?"  
".......I don't know." Her brow furrowed in thought. "Maybe it's some kind of virus that became immune to modern medicine. Or an outbreak of an old illness. Whatever it is, it's spreading fast, but not fast enough to wipe out an entire civilization.......Weird." She glanced back over and saw him staring back.".......What?"  
"Nothin'. I just like listening to you talk. It's peaceful."  
She raised a brow. "Peaceful?"  
He shrugged. "It is compared to my bro's yappin'. Or Indy's all serious talk about respect and manners."  
"......What about Mavric?"  
"He's quiet, but sometimes it's nice when someone actually talks back."  
She stared at him. He only smiled and stared back. His body bobbing up and down strangely. She looked between them at the source of his body's limp. A pink patch of hairless skin shown plain as day on his leg. He knew what she was staring at, but glanced down anyways before looking back at her.  
"Neat, huh?"  
She flinched and looked up at him.  
"Kinda makes me look bada$$."  
"S-Sorry. Didn't mean to stare."  
He stretched his arms out until they were placed behind his head. His long ears twitched. "It's alright. Everyone's done it by now and I'm pretty used to it."  
".......What happened?"  
He shrugged again. "Some jacked up driver ran me over."  
"........I got hit by a car, too."  
He stopped......and looked at her.  
"........What?" The feeling of his one eye looking her up was uncomfortable.  
"Nothin'. You just......don't look like it." From what he could see, she didn't have any scars or disabilities minus her glasses. Maybe they were under her clothes or fur where no one could see.  
She nervously fiddled with her vest. "Um......I healed pretty well. Heh." He continued staring at her. She shrank back a bit from his gaze but never really lost contact with his eye.......Eye? "......Is it true?"  
"What is?"  
"Well...." God. She felt so rude for asking this. "They say you only have one eye......Is it true?"  
He paused.....but smiled and reached one hand over to prop up his bangs to show the scar underneath. It ended behind a skillfully placed eye patch where one would have an eye. Without really thinking, she reached a paw over to carefully touch it. But froze when he chuckled.  
With an embarrassed squeak, she pulled away. "Sorry, sorry, sorry! Oh, god. What was I thinking?"  
An arm casually hooked around her before she was pulled against a warm body.  
"Eh, don't sweat it. A cute gal like you can touch me anyday.~" He winked and she turned red faced before burying her face in her paws. "Now, c'mon. My bro's probably wondering where we are."


	23. School Stuff Part 2

"Where are those two? It usually doesn't take this long."  
The dark skinned girl tapped her foot impatiently and stared off in the direction of her friend's house. A red arm circled around her.  
"Eh. Don't get yer antlers in a bunch. My bro ain't exactly the fastest guy in the world with his leg n' all."  
"Hmm. Well, we're gonna miss the bus if they don't hurry up. I knew we should've waited for her."  
Her boyfriend shook his head and snorted.  
"He does have a point."  
"What?" She turned to her younger cousin who smiled shyly.  
"Crossbones does tend to be here on time anyways. We should give him more time."  
".....Hmph. Alright."  
"Speak of the devil." The red mammal pointed at two figures coming towards them. "Looks like Vick's finally gettin' here, too."  
The two finally got close enough for the other three to speak to without yelling and Cappuccino raised a brow at them.  
"Well it's 'bout time you two got here. I was beginning ta think you two decided to make out or something."  
Vikki turned a light pink and gave Crossbones a look when he hummed and looked at her expectedly.   
"Sounded tempting.~"  
"Ahaha. No. We're not even dating at the moment."  
"Not at the moment, huh?" She froze. "Hmm. That can change.~"  
"N-N-N...S-Stop flirting with me!"  
He laughed and held her back with one arm while she grabbed at him. Cappuccino and her boyfriend laughed too, but stopped when a soft voice piped up.  
"Um.....Guys. The bus is coming." They turned and she pointed down the road.  
The familiar yellow bus was making it's way down the corner towards them.  
"Wait.....Shouldn't we wait for Indy and Mav?"  
"Uh....Their meeting us there. Something about a prince?"  
"Alright. Can't really argue with Indy on that."  
..................................................................................................................................................................................................  
The black limo drove down the road, slowing down the closer they got to the school building. The multi eyed snake turned to look at them.  
"Okay! Everyone have all your homework?"  
The little girl bounced in her seat. "Yeah!"  
"Bow. Calm yourself. Uncle, keep your attention to the road."  
Her brother gave a groan and buried his face into his paws. Their older cousin only rolled his eyes.  
"Samson quite your complaining. You should accept that she's with us now. She's YOUR responsibility when I'm not around."  
"........Yes, Winter."  
The car slowed to a complete stop once in front of the school building. Winter pushed the door open and Bow attempted to run out only to be snatched back.  
"Wait for Samson."  
"M'kay!"  
"Bye,kids! Uncle Tony's gonna pick you up later. Winter, I'll pick you up later after your cleaning duty later."  
"Thank you, Uncle." He slammed the door shut and the motor started back up before the car slowly drove away. Meanwhile Bow had spotted a certain someone and grabbed her brother's paw.  
A squeal got his attention when Samson was suddenly grabbed and pulled by Bow towards another small child.  
"Gunter! Gunter! Gunter!"  
Said child squealed back and ran towards his friend and her annoyed looking brother. He inwardly chuckled. He couldn't lie he was somewhat curious to how this would effect Samson.  
"Winter.~"  
Two arms slunk around his torso and someone pressed against his back. He chuckled and slowly reached up to caress said arms.  
"Hello, Darling." He turned his head sideways and saw spots. She smiled as he reached a hand over her shoulders and pulled her against his chest. "And how might you be?~''  
She purred. "Fine.~ My dads are mad.....but Travor hasn't bothered me all morning."  
"Really now?" He knew of the other snake's many failed attempts to court Zoey when he wasn't there. "How interesting."  
"I guess you finally got through to him."  
"Perhaps......Tell me. Where is our friend?"  
"Jamie? She's inside. Why?"  
"There is something I wish to discuss with both of you."


	24. School Stuff p 3

"So......Your dad wants you to kill who?"  
The two ladies stared at him like he was crazy. He only calmly stared back at them. The small closet he had lead the girls too had barely any light, which made his blue eyes seem to glow.  
"I must admit, it was unexpected to say the least. Father hasn't been in his right mind for quite a while, and I fear he'll do something......'extreme' without thinking."  
The cheetah tilted her head and gave him a look while crossing her arms. "And do you plan on actually doing it?"  
He was quiet for a moment lost in thought, but he did look up at the sisters.  
"While I would gladly like to be rid of the problem.....My father and his often make good business deals and Ms. Baltimore IS a decent actress. With how things are going, I'd rather not risk to possibly loose 'good' people that bring us business. But who knows what the future has in store?"  
"Seems like a good idea, but the spoiled snowflake hasn't been near her for a good while."  
"If he changes his mind.....he'll see why I've earned the name 'Cold-Hearted Killer'."  
They gave him confused looks.  
"I thought you said you WEREN'T gonna kill 'em."  
"Kill? No. Well, at least not in this point and time. Beat to a living pulp? Most definitely.~" Jamie rolled her eyes. "Now....I would advise we all exit and head to class before anyone becomes suspicious to why I'm in a closet with two young ladies."

~~~~~~~~~~

The small grinding of his inner mechanics was nothing new to him. He had it since birth and learnt to live with it. Like he had learnt to live with other things.  
Though there are some things one never gets used to.........This being one of them.  
"Ain't ya tired of doin' the same routine everyday? You're like a robot......Oh, yeah."  
He took a deep breath before fully turning around to look over his shoulder at the other demon. The harpy simply blinked his red and black eyes lazily as he leaned against the wall.  
"I keep forgetting your mom's a hot robot."  
He gave a small growl. "I would appreciate it if you didn't talk about my mother like that. She's not some harlot computer."  
It was often one of the many things he had to deal with when one lived in H*ll. His mother (A.K.A one of the head staff and expert on the sin of lust) did have very beautiful features and many would 'compliment' him on how 'pretty' his mama was.......And by 'compliment' he meant cat calls and rude gestures. And by 'pretty' he meant them calling her things he'd rather not repeat.  
He shrugged. "Meant nothing by it. Im just sayin' what it is. 'Sides.....MILFs ain't really my thing."  
"W-W-Would yOu STOP?!," he shouted in a glitched voice. His eyes threatening to become all red. If one thing got on his nerves it was someone comparing his mother to 'THOSE' women.  
He didn't have to worry about that for long though. As a certain taller figure walked up behind him. Reaching a hand out and grabbing around his neck and yanking back. He yelped and scrambled at the clenching around his throat.  
"Careful, Rara. That woman raised me. You should really respect your elders." Mismatched eyes glued onto the struggling harpy. "Ya never know what'll happen if you ain't careful."  
"Helsing! You're hurting him." Two brown paws grabbed his forearm. "Stop being so mean!"  
"Your Highness.......It would be devastating if the young Princess witnesses something she shouldn't."  
"Relax." He held up both hands dropping the smaller demon. Who hacked and coughed. "You two act like I was gonna kill the poor b*st*rd."  
"You might as well you stupid cu-!" He trailed off into another coughing fit. Spitting out black liquid.  
He knelt down and carefully lifted the harpy to his feet. He stood on shaking legs and shot Helsing a glare to which he smiled at.  
"A$$hole!!"  
"Meh. I've been called worse."  
"By who?"  
"Ask your mother-"  
"HELSING!!.......Shouldn't I be escorting Lacey to school now? I'm SURE you wouldn't want to have her miss her studies." He made sure to keep a good clutch on Raven in case he decided to fight Helsing. Last time it happened, things got a little.....messy.  
"......." He blinked. "Meh. Guess yer right."  
"And shouldn't you be getting to your H*ll Studies with Ms. Hilda?"  
He shrugged. "Relax, Indy. I graduated last year. I got plenty of time to relax."  
"Yes, but you still have your duties and studies of H*ll to perfect. As Prince, you shouldn't ignore your responsibilities. What would Margo think?"  
"Yeah, yeah. I get'cha. I'll get it done as soon as I get back."  
"Get back? Where are you going?"  
"Over ta Dimitri's. Been wantin' ta see him for a while."  
He groaned. "Should something happen to you-"  
"Dad knows I visit 'Uncle' Addi's kids ALL the time. I don't need you looking over my shoulder all the time."  
He rolled his eyes. "One of these day's you're going to get us in big trouble, Helsing."  
He shrugged again before lazily floating past them. "You say that, but I always find a way ta fix it. I'll see you guys later."  
Indigo groaned before nudging Raven away from him. "As for you! Ms. Hilda will be wondering why you'll be late for your lessons."  
"Whatever. I only do it because my mom asked. Otherwise I would've been outta here years ago."  
He rolled his eyes but turned to Lacey and offered her his arm. She gently took it and he calmly took her along.  
"We should get to school. We're late enough as it is."


	25. School Stuff P5

The normal hoard of students walked by as he boredly looked out his mother's classroom door. He SHOULD be out there waiting for his friends and younger cousins.......but his mother had other ideas.  
He turned his bored stare onto her and the armchair she sat in. Being the teacher of magical animals and plants meant she had a much larger classroom compared to the other teachers in order to show specimens of her 'teachings'. She was relaxed in her chair but looked up sensing his gaze.  
"And jus' what are you gawkin' at?," she asked with a raised brow.  
He sighed and raised his hands to sign. Despite being mute from birth, he had no problem talking in his own way. Thank god Carrie knew so many languages being an expert on all kinds of critters, Sign language happened to be one.  
"I should be waiting for my friends. They're supposed to meet me and Indigo."  
"Yeah? Well, they can afford to wait just a bit longer. They can git ta class without ya playing babysitter to 'em."  
He narrowed his eyes. "I don't see why you're not letting me leave."  
Her smile faded a but. ".........Ya don't need ta be out there right now."  
He cocked his head confused. If it was the virus going around, Zoo Pheonix Academy had some of the best health and safety procations in E District. Ms. Keiko was the absolute best and had taken extra procaltions to teach the students about health and sickness outbreaks.  
"But, I won't get sick. I'm perfectly healthy."  
"It's NOT that d*m virus I'm worried about...Ok. It's a lil' bit of that. It's mostly.......somethin' else."  
This made him very confused. "What? I promise not to get into trouble. I don't start fights."  
"I know" was all she said.  
......Ok. This wasn't normal for his mother. The last time she acted like this was when he accidentally got trampled by Brutis.  
He was about to ask what she meant when his sharp hearing made him snap his head around just in time to see a few people come in just as a loud ringing rang out. Among them was the ones who fought some time ago. The cold serpent's blue eyes glanced between him and Carrie briefly before silently going to where students usually sat and sat down. He was soon followed by Zoey and-  
His gaze fixated on the crimson fox as she sashayed over and placed herself on the other side of Winter. She didn't seem to notice him as the three whispered amongst themselves. A few more students came in including his group that greeted him...  
Then the two troublemakers slithered in. Trevor's face immediately lit up as his pink eyes landed on Zoey......but he froze before glancing back at Joselyn. The two silently went to the back and sat far from the trio. He raised an eyebrow at this, but shrugged it off as his mother's threats to them. They were being tutored by her and his mother could be very scary.  
"Mavric." He whipped around to the.......sad(?) face of his mother. She nodded towards his friends. "Go sit. First class issa 'bout ta start."  
Still confused, he did as he was told. He ended up sitting next to one of his cousins who nudged him to get his attention.  
"Um.....W-Where's Indigo? Hellbent told us you were waiting with him."  
He shrugged and signed, "I haven't seen him yet. Ma kept me in here all morning. She's been acting weird."  
"Maybe because Uncle Fitch is comin'." His other little cousin poked her head around to peer at them. "Them two don't exactly see eye to eye."  
It was true. Mavric knew his mother was mixed demon, and he had heard about the......'incidents' his Uncle Fitch and Aunt Eve had with demons......His mother and Uncle didn't exactly see eye to eye. He liked to think they got along decently.  
"HEY!" The three were startled by their aunt (his mother) eyeing them. "Shut yer traps. Class already started."  
"Sorry, Aunt Carrie."  
Some snickers were heard from the back and he shot a glare back there....Before someone suddenly busted in making everyone whip towards the door. Standing there was a very anxious looking fox.  
He gave Carrie a guilty face. "Please forgive me for being late, Ms. Carrie. I had to escort Lacey to her class safely-''  
"It's alright. Just sit down and NO more lollygaggin'." No one said anything as Indigo went over to plop himself next to Mavric. Carrie waited a bit. "Good. Now shut up and pay attention. 'Cause today we're learning about the evolutionary branch off between animal shifters and humans."  
Macric turned to Indigo and gave him a poke. The robotic fox gave him a look as he signed.  
"Helsing?"  
He only nodded.  
"Thought so."


	26. Family Matters P2

"Babe! Where's the TV remote!?"  
The dragon shoved aside the pillows and cushions on the couch and sniffed around for said TV remote.  
"Babe!," he shouted again when she didn't answer.  
"What?!," she shouted from the kitchen.  
"I can't find the f*cking remote!" He became more frustrated as he tossed a pillow to the side. The dragon snorted before reaching up to scratch his head.  
Where was the d*m thing?  
He was just about ready to toss the entire couch when a sudden loud knocking noise got his attention. He whipped around to the door. Letting out a curious grunt before sniffing the air. Instantly his face lit up and his spiked tail wagged.  
On the other side of the door, another dragon gave a louder knock.  
"Are they home?"  
He turned with a rose brow down at his mate. "They better be. Eve was very....insistant over the phone. She knew to expect us. It'd be rude to not be here when we arri-" He froze as his ears twitched towards the door.  
"What-?"  
She didn't have much time before she was shoved back and a red blur whizzed through the door. Tackling him to the ground. Her moth fuzz bunched up at the sudden attack. The two figures skidded to a stop a few feet away.  
"Hi, Fitch!"  
The green dragon groaned before reaching up to straighten his glasses. A dragon with red hair and a wagging tail came into view.  
"Delightful to see you too, Hatchet. Now would you mind getting OFF my chest?"  
"BABE!!"  
Another woman dashed past her from the house. She ran over to Hatchet and shoved him off his brother's chest.  
"I swear one of these days you're gonna kill him doing that!"  
"Eh, it's fine. Dragons are built strong."  
She groaned and looked at the dragon that was just starting to get up. "You ok there?"  
He fully got up and began straightening himself out. "Been worse. But must you always go for the chest?"  
He shrugged. "It never gets old."  
"Is Miracle here?"  
He jumped at the soft voice. He almost forgot Missk was there.  
"She left for school a while ago."  
"That's probably best."  
Fitch moved past them towards the house with Missk in tow. The couple gave each other confused looks but Hatchet shrugged and they followed. Once inside, Eve closed the door behind them.  
"I thought you'd be ore happy to see your own daughter."  
He gave her a blank look. "Trust me. I am more than happy to see Miracle."  
She crossed her arms and gave him a skeptical look. "I'm picking up mixed vibes here pal."  
The two of them continued to stare at each other in tense silence while their partners watched slightly nervous......Eventually Fitch was the first one to back down with a sigh and sat on the couch. Everyone watching.  
He leaned back against the coach and slowly flashed his green eyes at them.  
"......How well do you know of the current outbreak?"  
Raising a brow, Eve slowly sat down in the chair across from him. Hatchet standing beside her. "A little bit. Isn't it some kind of flu or something?"  
"Not even close."  
The three exchanged confused looks before looking back at him.  
"....Whaddya mean, Bro?"  
"This.....thing is an expertly crafted genetic weapon......And it's no coincidence that this hasn't been a bigger outbreak."  
"Honey?"  
He glanced at her. "Think. If this really was just a newly discovered virus, it would've spread faster and more people would've been affected. Not just a few people here and there. And isn't it strange that all a school's students were diagnosed but none of the teachers were?" He shook his head. "No. These people and places are being specifically targeted. By whom and why is still unknown."  
A small silence followed.  
"....Why are you telling us this?"  
"......I wasn't supposed to tell anyone. But if something should happen to me....I would like to be know by what. But for your sake and our children's, I HIGHLY suggest you three tell no one either."  
"Where did you learn all this?"  
"At my employer's. Forgive me if we weren't here hours ago. But I always stop by there when I can. In fact, I have a special assignment in a few days."  
"Wait. So lemme get this straight." Hatchet narrowed his eyes. "In the few hours from when you two first got here, you already got all this fancy spy mission stuff from your boss?"  
"Yes," he answered bluntly.  
"......." He blinked and then snorted. "I told ya he was a work-a-holic."  
Fitch rolled his eyes.  
"Well.....Im sure Mirry's gonna be real happy. She gets to spend a couple days with you."  
Despite his usually serious demeanor, he gave a slight smile. "I'm sure she will....But now I must ask you something." he gave them a steeled look. "have either of you have heard of anything from Marx or his wife recently?"  
Another small silence followed as the two yet again looked confused.  
".......I think the last time we heard from them was two months ago when they called to wish Cappy a happy birthday......But that's it. I think the girls tried calling Marx a while ago, but I'm pretty sure he didn't answer......Why?"  
"Nothing too concerning......Hopefully."


	27. Hospital News

Well......Today was Thursday. The day before she would be released. Thank goodness. The food here wasn't exactly the best tasting.  
She especially would feel better once she was in a more familiar environment. Without staff or anyone else peering at her new limbs. And speaking of 'peering at limbs'.....She shifted uncomfortable as Dr. Larson was giving her one last check up before tomorrow.  
He hummed while he worked on her wings. Asking the occasional question like...'Does it hurt when I apply pressure here?' or 'Does it feel like they're pulling against your spine in anyway?' To which she answered no. He nodded and walked from behind her.  
He shoved his hands into his pockets. "Well....I see nothing wrong with them or the rest of your body. Which means your blood loss wasn't very concerning. But I am a little concerned with how your body will adjust to your new weight."  
She cocked her head to the side. "What do you mean?"  
He pointed behind her. "Despite your wings being incredible light for their size, when I weighed them they easily add another twenty-ish pounds to your spine. It could be a problem for your spine with the extra weight even if it's not that much. And you may be a bit weak from the blood that WAS lost and being bed ridden for the past two days."  
She gave him a smile. "It's alright. I'm sure it's better than being dead."  
"I bet. But why don't we see how your body really reacts to the new weight?" He held out his hands to her. "Just to make sure there's no complications."  
She stared a bit in thought.....but eventually agreed. It would be best to make sure NOW and not worry about it later. She reached out to grab both hands and stood-  
Only for the sudden new weight to pull her body back. She stumbled and was thankfully caught by Dr. Larson. Oh, crap. Her back suddenly felt like someone strapped a bag of bricks to it, and her legs felt light and wiggly like jello. She slowly looked up at the doctor with an embarrassed face.  
"Um......Sorry."  
"It's quite alright. This is to be expected after all." He hoisted her gently to her feet helping her keep balance. "Come now. Let's walk around the room and get the blood circulating. That might help strengthen your leg muscles. At least enough so you can stand."  
She agreed and with his help, she stumbled a bit moving her jelly legs. After maybe an hour doing this with a couple breaks, she managed to be able to stand and walk on her own. But her body still felt strange.  
".....How do you feel?"  
She looked at him. "Fine but.....weird. Very strange."  
"Well that is too be expected with this sort of thing. Some exercise and healthy eating should help you recover."  
She gave him a grateful smile and was about to thank him when she suddenly paused. Her left ear twitched and she whipped to around to the window.  
Dr. Larson gave a confused look the longer she stared at the window. "Are you quite alright?"  
"I......don't know. I feel like there's......something I need to see out there." He gave her an even more confused look as her eyes squinted and she raised a paw to point out. "Is that......a helicopter?"  
Extremely confused, he walked over to the window and peered out. There indeed was a helicopter in the distance, but it certainly wasn't uncommon. You'd see one every so often. He turned back to her.  
"Yes. You have very good hearing."  
She didn't share his smile. "It's....coming straight to the hospital."  
"You don't know that. Perhaps it's a lifeflight." He turned back to the window.  
As it got closer, the whirling noise got louder. It seemed pretty apparent that it probably would just fly over the hospital. He just shook his head.  
"It's going to pass."  
Her face lit up in a terrified form.  
"No. It's not."  
He was just about to ask what she meant when a sudden gust of wind blasted through the window. He shot back as a black flying machine stayed suspended in air. The noise from the motor blared through his ears drowning out the fox's screams-  
"Doctor!! DOCTOR, GET BACK!!"  
A force pulled him back and he slammed to the floor. A whistled sounded out and a blast loud enough to be considered thunder on steroids rattled the whole building. Random things fell, broke, and rattled. As soon as it came it stopped. Leaving a ringing in his ears.  
Groaning, he slowly managed to somehow get to his knees. His vision whirled being a bit disoriented but it cleared enough to see the messy room and other person. He crawled hands and knees over to her.  
"Ms. Foxor! Are you alright?!"  
She groaned and sat up. "Yes. What was-OH MY GOD!!"  
He whipped around.  
".......What in the bloody h*ll?!"  
Half of the back wall was gone and probably the entire wall of the room next to them.  
"What just happened?!"  
"I.....I don't know. I-It must've been a terrorist attack. Or perhaps a mental patient patient escaped. O-Or-"  
Another blast suddenly shook the building.  
"I do know one thing though. This is an obvious attack!''  
He helped her slowly stand up as the first shouts and screams started. He gave a look of horror and made for the door.  
"Where are you going?"  
"If anyone's hurt, they'll need all the help available."  
Her ears twitched again. "DON'T-!"  
The door was busted open and a tall figure stared down at them.  
"......You! Get the F*CK over to that bed and treat this lady!"


	28. Hospital News P2

Panicked screams, and sirens from below filled the air as she sat next to the figure in the bed.  
The tall cat had shoved the bed against the opposite side of the wall as so it couldn't be seen from the missing part of the back wall. Cr. Larson was busy examining the unconscious doe as ordered by the taller cat. Said cat pressed against the wall next to the hole and stared out. Probably waiting fir the helicopter to come around again.  
The doc would've probably left to tend to anyone else that needed help if it wasn't for the fact that the cat had piled anything he could grab against the door and.....he had a gun....A really BIG tommy gun. She had a sickening feeling that this wasn't just a random attack......How?  
Well, it's not everyday the wife of a powerful Don was left in such a vulnerable position away from her husband's protection.....And that the cat bristled everytime the helicopter circled. Which meant he identified it as an enemy. Which also meant that this was bad. Very....VERY bad.  
"This isn't good."  
She stared at him. "Is she ok?"  
"What? Oh! Yes! This lady is perfectly fine."  
"I meant the situation we're in."  
As if to prove his point, another blast and rattling of the building shook their core. As if out of instinct, she grabbed onto the bed to help keep the poor doe from getting hurt.  
"When's the help arriving?!"  
"I'm not even sure if the proper help will get here before something even worse happens. Or if they're even notified of this."  
She looked back at......Nicholas? If she remembered correctly that's what Marx said his name was.....She froze. Wait a minute......MARX!! If she was right about this, then they could get help much faster as the studio was closer than the main police station of E District.  
"Nicholas!!"  
The cat whipped his head to her in an instant. Guess she got his name right.  
"We need to call Castello!"  
"And how do you suggest we do THAT?!," he shouted just before another blast rocked the building.  
She scrambled to reach under the pillow. Feeling around until she felt the cold metal of the hidden phone. She almost dropped it a couple times because of how fast she was trying to work herself. She fumbled her mate's phone number with her heart pounding in her ears. It began to ring just as she held it to her ear.  
"...Please work.."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Five. Six. Seven. Wait.....Isn't it supposed to be eight chapters?"  
He gave the younger dragon a confused look. He quickly shook his head.  
"I-I'm pretty sure Gustav said this was the last of it. H-He organized everything else last night."  
He sighed and turned back to the desk with the minature stack of paper. After two days and nights of none stop work, he had FINALLY gotten all the paper sorted out. How it got all scrambled, he'll never know.  
"Um....M-Mr. Marx. Sir. I-I don't need to be I-intrusive or anything. B-B-But are you alright?"  
He gave him a silent and tired look".........Maybe? *sigh* I don't know. I just....gotta bad feeling about this whole thing. I'm still waiting for SOMETHING to happen."  
His assistant gave him a smile. "W-Well, she's in the hospital with l-lot's of help so I'm sure she's alright."  
As if on cue, a small ringing sound called out to them. He took a breath. It was probably Quivor again for the scrpts he promised her the night before. Digging into his back pocket, he fished out the phone. Holding it up to his tired eyes to read. His irritated expression quickly melting into a happy one.  
"Hey! It's Juju!" He thrusted the phone towards Victor. Making him lean back. He didn't get a chance to read the caller ID. He happily clicked a button and held it up to his ear. "Jewel, honey. How-?"  
"MARX!!"  
They leaned away from the panicked shout that traveled through the phone. When they looked back, more shouts came.  
"Marx, get Castello!! He needs to get over here!! He needs to get here NOW!!"  
"W-W-Wait! What are you talking about?!" Victor could see the rising fear in his eyes. "What's going on?!"  
A muffled crashing sound emanated from the phone as if she was calling them from next to a thunder cloud. The two gave each other a short terrorfied look.  
"J-Juliet?" When she didn't answer his ears fell back against his head and his eyes widened. "Hey. Jewel!.....Jubilee! C-Come on! Say something!"  
"GET CASTELLO!!!"  
He almost dropped the phone but fumbled and caught it. He scrambled from behind his desk, barely managing to not trip over his own feet. But he gave Victor one last look before running down the hall.  
"Get those to Quivor!!"  
His hurried footsteps echoed through the walls as he ran past others (who gave him weird looks), yelled at others to move out of the way, and even jumped over a bench two men were carrying. But no time to admire his sudden athletic skills. There was a certain Don who needed to know of this.  
RIGHT. NOW.  
What he didn't see was the hand until it snatched his shirt. He gagged at the feeling of his shirt tightening around his neck for a brief moment before loosesning when whoever gripped him dragged him back in front of her.  
"D-D-Director!"  
The taller woman stared at him with a clear scowl on her face. "And where are YOU going? You're supposed to be helping me with the movie production!"  
"I-I will! I Will! I definitely will, but I gotta see Castello! It's an emergency!"  
She scoffed. "And what pretell is more important than the finishing of this movie?! Castello's already hounding us as it is for all these delays! I'm SURE they can handle whatever it is-HEY!"  
He attempted to push past her, but she grabbed his collar this time and lifted him up enough to where he felt partcially choked. She growled and pulled him back. He gagged and reached up to try to get her to let go. He couldn't believe this was happening!  
"It's time you stop hiding in that office like the spineless idiot you are! Nothing but a lazy paperwork pusher! It's a miracle your boredom didn't end you up with a dead wife!"  
Unknownst to her, at the words 'dead wife'......He completely stopped struggling and froze. Oblivious, she continued yelling and tried to drag him....Key word being 'tried'. His ears slowly lowered to pin flat against his head as his eyes turned into thin slits. His head slowly turned to her. She stopped at the sight of his bared fangs, but didn't let go.  
"*tch* And what is that supposed to do?! Intimidate me? You seem to have a running death wish-UH!!"  
In one quick punch to the chest, she went flying back a good four yards. Landing with a loud thud. She didn't have time to respond before something grabbed both shoulders and slammed her to the floor. Her black eyes met the thin yellow ones on the dragon and instant rage took over her.  
How DARE he do that to his superior!? His BOSS?! In her blind rage, she didn't see his own or hear the growl from his throat. Until his jaws opened-  
And the roar came.  
It was like her body completely shut down. Submitting to the fear she should've felt in the beginning. The roar echoed off the halls and who knows how many others heard it. As soon as it came, he snapped his haws shut and gave her the deadliest hissing noise he could muster. She stayed completely still until he snorted and finally let go of her. Hurrying down the hall.  
His foosteps faded away enough for her to try to speak....Too bad all that came out was an unknown squeak.


	29. Hospital News P3

"Salem."  
The female didn't have to be told twice as the weapon in her hands clicked. The Director wasn't the only one that heard the dragon's roar apparently. It had just better not be the dragon he never wanted to see again.  
His yellow eyes fixated on the door. The papers he was once attempting to finish going through were all but forgotten. As his full attention was now directed on the door.....and the footsteps rapidly approaching. The tall cat aimed the weapon at the door just the doorknob jiggled.  
A moment later, the dragon practically kicked the door off it's hinges. He raised a brow at his panting, sweating employee. Marx attempted to speak but he sputtered from his body's lack of oxygen and leaned over to take deep breaths. Salem lowered the weapon with an annoyed look but still held it at the ready just in case. Her boss gave off a sigh.  
"What is it now, Marx? Did someone else have a problem with clothes?" He frantically shook his head. "Well, spit it out then."  
"......H-Hospital....*gasp* B-B-Big bang noise."  
Everyone froze. Except for Marx who stumbled forward and almost tripped into the desk if his hand didn't grab onto the side. He held the phone out to him, face silently pleading for him to take it.  
He stared back blankly but snapped out of his trance long enough to operate his hand. He didn't even remember grabbing the phone or holding it up to his face before saying-  
"Yes?"  
A silence seemed to stretch as everyone waited in painful anticipation. The sudden screeching of the office chair broke said silence as the Don abruptly stood up.  
"How long ago?" It was that eerily calm voice that Marx and any other sane person came to fear. It was that emotionless voice that clearly meant he was beyond p*ssed.  
He dropped the phone onto the desk and gave a deep long hiss.  
"Salem. Your brothers." He stepped from behind the desk and reached a hand out to grab a black coat off the coat rack on his way out. Salem and Marx followed right behind him.  
"Ribbon! Where is that bloody idiot? Ribbon!"  
He slipped the coat over his shoulders as he stormed his way towards the stairway. Many of his employees pressed against the walls or offered greetings to their obviously p*ssed off boss. Of course he ignored them. He had more pressing matters to tend too. And speaking of which-  
"RIBBON!!"  
"What?!" The crazy serpent poked his head out of one of the rooms up ahead.  
Castello waited until he was close enough before grabbing his brother by the arm and pulling him to the side and giving him a deadly look.  
"Get Antonio and retrieve the children. And DON'T attract any unwanted attention."  
He blinked his many eyes. "What? But school doesn't end for another two hours. It's a half day y'know."  
His brother gave off a deeper hiss and pulled him closer. "The rumor that McClain has put a hit on my family was NOT a rumor."  
Ribbon stared at him for a moment......but soon his eyes widened to the size of dinner plates.  
"HOLY SH*T!!" He grabbed his hair. "MY KIDS!!"  
He booked it down the hall. Shouting for Antonio.  
"......Marx." The dragon flinched as yellow eyes turned to him. "You are in charge until I get back."  
"WHAT?! NO!! I HAVE TO GO!!"  
Castello stood there and stared at him. He stared back as well, but it did dawn on him after a few seconds.....He said NO.....To a mafia boss that obviously not in the mood to be argued with. His heart picked up pace at this notion. Oh, sweet f&ck! What had he do-?  
"Fine. Come if you must, but you had BETTER NOT get in the way. I don't have time to argue with you."  
He let out a sigh and nodded. Gulping down the lump in his throat. His nerves needed to be toned down a notch.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The last blast had everyone on edge. This one felt pretty close as the force was enough to send them to the ground and her scrambling after her phone. Which ended up being caught by Nicholas. The cat ordered Marx to get Castello and had waited a good minute or so before being able to relay the news to their boss. His now silence was enough to tell her the Don was on his way.  
"I hope you don't mind me asking-" She turned to the doctor. It was starting to get hard to hear with the ringing in her ears and havoc noises. "-but was calling your boss really important right now?"  
"Uh.....It was better that he knew about this. Can't say why at the moment. I-I'm more concerned about the person in the helicopter."  
The whirling sound of the deadly motor came around again and she tensed up. All it took was one good hit and all of them would be killed.  
"Well, help better come soon."


	30. Hospital News P4

Smoke had began to fill the air and several people from blocks around had heard the awful blasts from the missles. One in particular had been watching the window since the beginning. Her pink and blue eyes fixated on the smoke-y horizon.  
".....This isn't like you."  
She slowly turned her head to the younger person. His red eyes narrowed and arms crossed across his chest. She merely smiled sweetly and fluttered her eyelashes.  
"Who? Me? Aha hmhmhm."  
He didn't change his look. "Yes. You. You've been wearing that human disguise and living with me for over a month."  
She raised a brow. "Oh? Would you rather have me leave?"  
"NO!!"  
She let out a snort at his response. As much as he enjoyed his company (and boy he REALLY was desperate for her to stay more often), this......wasn't like her. At ALL. The longest she'd ever stayed with him (before this of course) was two weeks. She never stayed with him this long before. His sister had to urge to travel to different places. Not settle down.  
"I mean you've never stayed this long before. You're up to something."  
She only smiled. "A magician never reveals their secrets."  
He sighed and reached a hand up to place his head in it. She only smiled and gave another round of laughter. She couldn't deny that this wouldn't be a fun ride. It certainly would be life changing for some. God or bad?......Eh. Depends on their decisions. Right now-  
"Hannibal, honey. Where is our dear, Nicolo?"  
He looked at her between his fingers. "Mr. Castello called him off. There was an emergency."  
She smiled. "Good.~ Why don't we have a little field trip?"  
His antenna twitched. Outside the studios? He only ever went out if Winter had invited him. Which wasn't much and most of the time it was to less crowded places and for 'business'. His sister made sure to take him all across E District for fun.  
"Where are we going?"  
Her smile got wide enough to where her human face almost gave out.  
"Oh, you know. All your favorite places. The library, arcade, indoor swimming pool..........And maybe even a trip to see dear...DEAR Chesire.~"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pain. Worry. Fear.  
All that and more was flowing through his veins. Why couldn't this d*m car go F*CKING FASTER!?  
"S-Shouldn't we go faster?!" He nervously fiddled with the collar of his shirt. "Something could've happened by now!''  
A low hiss was returned. "And you don't think I know that? Traffic is piling the d*mmed streets like filthy vermin!''  
The dragon gave off a small whine and felt his ears droop against his head. He tried to busy himself by looking out the window and watched as the car slowly made progress down the filled roads. People were running away or towards the destruction. Pointing, shouting, filming it, watching in fear......You name it. This caused him to gulp the nervous lump in his throat.  
"Nicolo. Take the opening."  
Marx looked befuddled at the snake......then out the window.....then back to him. "Wha- T-There's no opening."  
He sat back. "Then make one."  
He opened his mouth to ask what he meant when the all too familiar sound of screeching tires filled the air and the car serged forward. Marx yelped and dug his talons into the cushion to keep himself from being tossed around. The car began to snake it's way through traffic while picking up pace.  
It didn't seem to affect the Don or the three tall cats he had with him. At one point, he gave Marx a glance while rolling his eyes. There was a reason Nicolo was the get away driver....or just the driver in general. He made the racers look like Sunday drivers.  
"Stop your stupid figiting and turn on the monitor."  
And by monitor, he meant the built in TV the car had. Marx managed to unclench his left arm long enough to quickly snatch the flip screen and pull it down before once again clutching the seat for dear life.  
"Salem."  
The taller cat reached to a panel of buttons beside the screen without question and kept pressing one making different channels flip across the screen until she abruptly stopped.  
"-from E District News." What looked like a news station came on. "Candy is live with the shocking news forming at the E District Health Center. Tell us what's happening over there, Candy? What's the situation?"  
All their yellow eyes became glued to the screen.....and Marx felt his stomach drop.  
The regular hosts had cut over to a worried looking woman and around her was the most people he had ever seen in one place before. All looking and/or pointing up.  
She held the microphone to her mouth. "Hello. This is Candy Kinderwell reporting LIVE from the crowd surrounding the E District Health Center. And the situation is not good I'm afraid, Joe. Unfortunately we haven't been able to get close enough for a good shot-" She raised her hand up and the camera followed.....  
And it was the first time Marx ever saw Castello drop his cigar.  
"-but if you look behind me, you'll see where the hospital has sustained not one but seven blows that has littered the ground around it in debry and rubble from where the explosives were launched at."  
"......H-Holy sh*t."  
The building had more holes in it than swiss cheese. Smoke poured heavily from a hole in the very top. Another hiss made itself known.  
"Of courssssse a newsssss crew would get there before anyone ussssseful."  
The camera paneled back to her. "No one is certain WHO is responsible for such a seemingly random attack-"  
"I can take a wild guessss." He always noticed how when Castello got angry enough he would hiss more with certain words.  
"-but eyewitnesses have stated that it all happened within a span of forty five minutes to an hour ago when the attacks first began. It's also been stated that it has been circling the building since the last attack about twenty minutes ago. Police have been alerted and are on their way with support, but no one is sure when help will arrive. The-"  
"LOOK THERE!!," a man next to her shouted and pointed.  
Instantly, the camera whipped up and bounced around a bit before it's vision refocused. A small image of the flying machine appeared on the screen. He pressed against the side of the car when Castello let out a cross between a yell and hiss.  
"Nicolo," he growled through clenched fangs.  
"We'll arrive within one minute."


	31. Hospital News P5

Her breathing got quicker as the sound of whirling blades came back around. Any second, another missile could be launched at them from who knows where. The doctor tried to get her to calm down, but he looked just as nerve racked as she was.  
Nicholas hadn't moved from his spot on the wall and his ears were pinned back against his head. A million questions raced through her mind at this point. Like....Would they survive this horrible thing? How many people were already harmed from this? When will it all stop?  
Her stomach dropped when the helicopter, for whatever reason stopped and hovered in front of the hole that made up half of the wall. How did she know?....Well the sickening sound of whirling blades not budging from that certain spot could've been a dead give away. Her heart pounded harder until it filled her ears and her grip on the metal bed tightened.  
Bed?  
Her blue eyes skimmed over the bed and the unconscious older lady on it. If it wasn't for the fact that a very nasty virus wa affecting her ( and someone was currently trying to kill her), she would've easily assumed that she was just sleeping. Unconciously reaching a paw over, she pushed back some of the blue hair covering her face.  
She didn't deserve this. Marrying a dangerous man like Castello and conceiving someone like Winter was completely her choice, and she definitely didn't judge being married to someone in the mafia herself. But Castello being the Don made her the obviously better target. She was very lucky she first missile didn't kill her. And she wouldn't die here. Not as long as she could stop it....  
Which is why she grabbed the bed and pulled it. She only got a few inches when a black paw stopped her.  
"What are you doing?!"  
"We have to move her from the wall!" She tugged the bed but he didn't budge.  
"She's not leaving this room." His eyes narrowed.  
"I didn't say that! I said we-!" She froze and her ears twitched to the side.  
"GET DOWN!!"  
It all happened so fast.....  
A loud whistling wail. The sound of thunder right in her ears. Her world going sideways as her body slammed into the floor.....That part hurt. Her vision was fogging as a heavy ringing set in.  
"Get up!"  
Her head raised in confusion. Her arms were like noodles barely heaving her up enough to look around. Her heart skipped a beat at the once nice room. Half of it was gone! Actually. GONE!!  
The wall was completely opened to reveal them all. And in plain sight of the still hovering helicopter. She froze as she made contact with the blackened windsheilds. She couldn't tell who was on the other side if she wanted too.  
"Have no fear.....My child."  
Her head whipped around to look for the owner of that voice, but only saw Solstice under her. She must've grabbed her without realizing it, but there was no sign of the doctor as she could tell. Nicholas was slumped against the wall in the corner. Unconcious or dead she had no idea.  
"Stand up! Get up now!"  
She flinched at the demanding voice, but forced herself onto her hands and knees. A sudden pinch throbbed though her left thigh. Which made her whip a hand around to clutch it. A warm wetness welcomed it and the heavy scent of copper filled her strong snout.  
"Push yourself! Stand!"  
Yelping, she struggled to her knees alone and leaned against what was left of one wall. Using it to help pull herself up on shaky legs. The pain got worse to where she had to clutch the wound with both hands and had to mentally calm herself.She almost jumped when she heard the cat curse and struggled to move himself.  
She began to slowly limp towards him.....but paused and looked back down at Solstice's limp body....then back to the helicopter. Now that the ringing in her ears had died down, she could finally hear it. The screams from the hundreds of people from below. Her focus so great she didn't notice Nicholas limping behind her.  
The fear of all those innocent people hurt or worse made her stomach swim....And it was ALL. THEIR. FAULT!!!  
Slowly, she felt what was all fear burn into something MUCH more rare to her. Anger. Angry that this person dared to do such a thing to people that did nothing! Angry he would try to hurt a woman who was beyond kind! Angry she couldn't do anything to stop it!  
Her ears went back as her face grew into something she never thought was possible. A snarl. As her tiny fangs bared at the metal flying monster in front of them. Unconciously her wings seemed to take over and stretched themselves out to partcially hide the two behind her from sight. Fur and feathers bristled.  
She let loose a growl that someone might've said was cute if it wasn't for their current situation.  
"HOW DARE YOU!!," she yelled at the top of her lungs. Despite the pain, she let go of her leg and stood up to her full height. She stomped her way over until she was near the very edge of the drop down. She paid no mind though. If she was going to die, she'd make sure they knew what she thought of them. Pointing a red soaked paw at them.  
"HOW DARE YOU HURT THESE PEOPLE!! THEY'VE DONE NOTHING TO YOU!! YOU.....YOU.....DESPICIBLE WASTE OF LIFE!!"  
She didn't know if they heard her and she didn't care. All the anger seemed to heat into a white blaze. Blinding her mind with rage as she continued.  
"IT'S PEOPLE LIKE YOU WHO MAKES MARX AND EVERYONE ELSE SO SCARED!! AND I'M SICK AND TIRED OF IT!! BUT GUESS WHAT?! I'M NOT SCARED TO DIE BECAUSE I KNOW YOU'RE JUST A COWARD HIDING BEHIND A BIG GUN!!"  
Her lungs heaved as warm water flowed from her blue eyes.  
".......so....S-SO GO AHEAD AND SHOOT!! TAKE A FREAKING SHOT!! BECAUSE UNLIKE YOU I'LL ACTUALLY BE MISSED BY PEOPLE WHO GIVE A D*M ABOUT ME-!!"  
It was quick.....but not impossible to see. In one moment, the left wind shield (where one would assume would be where the driver was) shattered. She turned her head and raised her arms to shield her face from possible flying glass.  
The helicopter made a strange whirling sound as it lost control. With the driver (who she assumed was now dead) gone, there was no one to control it. Some force (or should I saw a black paw) was quick to grab her and pull her away before it crashed into the building. She cried out as a shockwave shook the building as the cat held pressed both girls against the remaining wall. The metal monster made strange groaning and crunching noises as it went down. Taking more of the already damaged building with it. Screams from the people below echoed in the air as the sickening sound of exploding metal rang out.  
She stood there panting as Nicholas held her in place.  
".....He's here."


	32. Hospital News P6

Warning: Some minor graphic scenes and bloodshed

What just happened? What the actual F*CK just happened?!  
That was the only though her brain could process. As the shock of the whole situation had finally settled in. Nicholas grunted and struggled to balance both women he held. One unconscious and the other that looked ready to faint at any moment. Juliet clung onto him tighter when she looked down.  
"......ohmygoodness...."  
She now envied Solstice for being both blind and unconscious. As the gap between themselves and the ground below was very......VERY...far below. There was barely any of the room left, so she had a first class view of the new threat of falling down the many, many stories of the once nice hospital. As if the cruel fate was teasing them all, a light breeze blew. Blowing their fur(and a couple of her feathers) slightly. She could faintly smell smoke from below and what she thought was burning oil and something that smelt like-  
"You're leg." She blinked and slowly looked up to meet his gold eyes. He tilted his head back and she followed his gaze to behind her. Her stomach dropped as a whine escaped her throat. She suddenly felt more light and if she wasn't being death gripped by the poor cat, she might've fainted and fallen off the edge. "It doesn't seem to be bleeding all that terrible, but the cut look fairly deep."  
It was? Through the fiery blaze that she briefly felt, she had completely forgotten about the wound on her thigh. Of course, she was a bit distracted at the moment and clouded by anger(which in itself was very strange). And not really paying attention to herself....Not a very good idea she now realized. Nicholas grunted and heaved her wobbling form against his, to which she quickly wrapped both arms around his waist. He was starting to think that it wasn't such a good idea to point it out right now. Especially considering how dangerous one mistake could be.  
"Hold still and calm yourself," he growled,"Or you'll be the death of us all."  
Her ears went back at the harsh tone, but halted her movements to his approval. He honestly didn't know how much longer he could just stand there and hold both these women from their doom. At least one was able to stand up herself. Trying to hold an unconscious person with one arm while basically NOT trying to fall down a cliff wasn't exactly a walk in the park.  
"Uh. F8ck me."  
CLANK!  
Both figures whirled around at the loud crashing noise. There was a pause before the door jiggled from someone ramming against it. The large shelf he previously pushed against it jolted with every hit, and a few tinier items fell off the egde, never to be seen again. She felt Nicholas's grip get tighter the more someone pounded against the door. She wanted to shout and demand who it was....but between her leg(which she now started to feel pain in again), the drop down, and how tense Nicholas was....It'd be best to keep quiet for now. The door continued to be bashed against, coming looser with every thrust until-  
With a sickening cracking noise, splinters flew from the door making her raise a wing to shield herself from showering wood, the metal shelf going over the edge. It made metal clanging noises as it disappeared down below.  
"Nicholas."  
She whipped her eyes up to the doorway and froze as Nickolas was staring back. It took her a moment to realize that this was a different cat from the one she was death gripping. He stared at her but panned up to his brother.  
"The women first."  
A hand suddenly grabbed one of her arms, and the stronger being wrenched her from around him. In a frightened panic, she flattened herself against the wall and willed herself not to look down, instead at the damaged ceiling. The fear and panic from before hitting her hard. Her heart race increasing. The black paw that was gripping her forearm gave her a hard shake, making her jolt and look at him.  
His gold eyes narrowed. "Move. Unless you want to stay and suffer like the doctor did."  
She gave him a frozen look, but another, more gentle nudge and her mind seemed to finally kickstart. She willed herself to slowly shuffle down towards the other cat. She got s little ways, before she stopped again.  
Gulping and trying NOT to look down the giant whole separating them from the door. The cat in the door had his hand outstretched the half point across the hole between them....Which meant she had to reach across the other half to reach him. If that wasn't bad enough, she no longer felt Nicholas's arm gripping hers, which caused an instant aching in her stomach, her paws to slightly sweat, as she slowly turned to head over her shoulder to give him a questioning look. He stared back, holding Solstice with both hands bridal style.  
"We don't have time to answer. Take his hand and go."  
She gave a visible gulp, but didn't dare argue as she turned back to his brother who still had his arm outstretched waiting. Juliet shuffled until she was just a couple inches from dropping off, forcefully willing herself to not look down...  
As her body trembled and shook.  
And her arm reached out.  
It seemed like one of those movie scenes Marx oversaw when the main characters needed to be saved....Or when one needed to die for the series. But, y'know. Real life instead. As soon as she was close enough, he suddenly grabbed her causing her to yelp as she was yanked across and around before colliding with something solid. She laid there skaken as more hands grabbed her and hoisted her body up to a standing position. She blinked rapidly at the sight of two other male cats holding her up as the third one carefully backed away from the doorway holding a limp woman. It was like she was in a trance as her brain still tried to process what just happened. She faintly noticed that one of the males holding her let go to take the woman his brother handed him.  
"Take them immediately. I'll retrieve Nicholas."  
She gave off a girly squeal as the cat grabbed her waist and quite literally threw her over her shoulder. Despite being very skinny, Salem and her brothers were very strong. Her brain finally seemed to kickstart and realized she was practically thrown to the floor and being kidnapped by her boss's minions. Oh, well. Better the villians she knew, than the villains she didn't. All she could do was tilt her wings against her back to keep it out of his face. They went down the halls where she got a front row seat to the horrors of the destruction.  
Smoke poured out of some of the rooms, and the over all condition made her gag like she would vomit. Multiple staff members and patients were screaming, hurt, scared, in need of help....She squirmed uncomfortably against his shoulder but stopped dead when she saw it.  
Some patient was slumped against the wall in a weird position...covered head to toe in red. She choked and squinted her eyes shut. But her eyelids couldn't protect her from the sounds. Screams, shouts, crying, footsteps, and what faintly sounded like a fire alarm. She felt him continue like none of it even mattered, and it probably didn't.  
"Go through the side of the building. A large crowd of panic is best for cover."  
She didn't know how she heard that over the chaos or when the other two cats joined them, but she didn't dare open her eyes in fear of what she might see. Of what she didn't want to see. The only thing she could comprehend at the moment was panic(lots of it), and the sudden pushing and shoving of more individuals. A crowd?  
She dared to open her eyes a bit to peek at her surroundings. And wished she hadn't. A whirlwind of figures screamed and moved around in a blur of screams and colors. It was like being stuck in a kolidascope. She shut her eyes once again to keep her head from becoming dizzy. Her ears pinned back from the loud sounds.  
What felt like an eternity was only a few minutes of torture, until she was forced off his shoulder when he bent down. She yelped and her wings flard open for balance. Someone caught her under her arms just as she almost hit the ground.  
A familiar whine made her look up. Blue eyes met gold ones.  
"Um...H-Hi, Honey."


	33. Princely Accident

The halls of the royal palace were empty for maybe one of his grandfather's employees every few minutes or so. They would bow, maybe say hi, and then scamper off to do whatever job they had to do. The actions only made him feel better about his position(*cough cough* his ego *cough*), but it was the norm where he lived. The halls came alive with the echoes of his soft humming. It was nice to just stretch his legs and walk about.  
A loud laugh came from one room up ahead followed by more happy shouts and laughs. He paid no mind to it though, and just casually walked past. Most likely some of the guards on lunch break. They could get a little rowdy when off duty.  
"I tell yous guys, if all the girls were like this good lookin' piece of a$$...This h*ll hole of a job would be a LOT more worth while! Why don't ya c'mere, Sugar?~"  
The herd of men cheered in agreement, but he still walked away. It was none of his business if they were catcalling one of the staff. It was Tenta and Hilda's jobs to take care of the female staff. He nearly turned the corner when the other voice made him halt.  
"I don't want to sit in you- LET GO OF ME!! You filthy A$$HOLE!!"  
"......heh."  
Silently he turned on his heels and walked back towards said room. Curses, laughs, and shouts continued to spill out from the slightly ajared door. A pink hand was placed against said door before it was slowly pushed open. The group of men laughed and shouted amongst each other as one of their friends cooed and firmly held a struggling female in his lap. Most of the men were still in their usual armor holding giant mugs filled with what he assumed was some kind of alcohol.  
The one holding the girl laughed at her attempts to get his larger hands to let go. "Y'know. I like my girls feisty and screaming.~"  
She gave him a deadly glare and bared her tiny fangs at him. Which only made him give off a lust filled growl and showed off his fangs, She instantly regretted her descision and started struggling again. Making the men laugh. The watching figure leaned against the doorway with calculating eyes as he decided on what to say. Finally deciding on-  
"You know what I like?"  
All the men froze or looked behind them at the new figure who now leaned against the doorway and stared at them with his usual grin. But something behind that smile and calm demeanor throbbed darkly.  
He reached up to scratch at his cheek." I like seeing my girl in my arms-" He pushed himself off the door and casually ran his hand through his red hair. "-all cute with her giant hair-"  
"Excuse me?!" The girl took the opportunity to yank herself finally out of the man's loosened grip while he was distracted. She took a good few steps away from the man, rubbing her paws through the fur on her body where he gripped her. She glared at the newcomer. "My hair isn't that big!"  
He shrugged walking over to where the guard was. "Whatever you want, Dove," he said drapping an arm around the guard. He gave him a smile too nice for any sane person to accept, "I see you made a new friend."  
She scoffed. "That's an understatement."  
"Oh? That can't be right." His arm lowered until it was more around the poor guard's neck than shoulders. He was visibly uncomfortable under the dark prince's gaze. His buddies all but silent. "With all the laughing and stuff...Im SURE these guys wouldn't do a thing like that." His arm slowly squeezed around the guy's neck. He made a small gasp and reached one beefy hand up to grab at it. "You must've been mistaken....Surely anyone would know what I would do if I found out someone.....'touched' you to put it lightly.~"  
The demon gulped down the lump in his throat. "O-Of course not. I-I was only joking around with the little lady."  
The prince only squeezed tighter. "Oh, I sure hope so for your sake. Sometimes jokes can go too far-"  
"Helsing."  
He stopped and his eyes shot to the girl a little ways from him. "Yyyyesss?~"  
"Uh.." Her eyes darted between the two demons. "Didn't you want to me? Outside? Away from these guys?"  
He stared at her a moment, but smiled wider and started to slowly unwind from him. The guard gave a visible sigh and rubbed his hand against his neck where it was gripped.  
"Sure, Sugarcube. Lets 'talk'" He leaned all the way back up. Tucking his hands into his jacket pocket before walking over to her. Hooking an arm around her body and pulling her against him. "We have some stuff to wrap up.~" He gave the group of men one last look. "......I'd get back to work if I were you. Dunno when someone might find ya."  
He gave off a dark chuckle that sent a shiver down her spine before he guided her towards the door. She was taken out of the breakroom and down the hallway before she was able to look at him.  
"Giant hair? Really?"  
He shrugged. "Eh. Ya can't say Im wrong with those luscious locks ya got.~" To make a point, he reached up the hand that was around her to run through her head of silky hair, but stopped when she jerked away.  
"I thought you were supposed to be at a friend's?"  
He shrugged and began to lean back to where one would think he would fall only to pop up a moment later in mid air. Hands in pockets and legs crossed. He gave a wide smirk.  
"Look. No legs."  
She gave off another huff and began to walk away with him floating next to her.  
"Sooooo*tch* What were you doing in the kitchen? Last time I checked, you were Hilda's little errand girl."  
"A friend of mine got sick and asked me if I could cover her shift," she said not looking at him.  
He clicked his tongue in thought and looked her over. She only gave him a look.  
"....What?"  
"What what?"  
"WHY are you staring at me?" She stopped.  
"Can't I admire my girl?~''  
At this, she wrinkled her snout up. "I am NOT you're anything."  
"Oh, c'mon." He swiveled to where he was floating in front of her. "Would being my date really be that ba-"  
"Yes." She cut him off.  
He stopped momentarily surprised, but relaxed back. "What's so bad about me?~"  
"Anything and everything," she replied bluntly.  
A small silence followed,  
His smile slowly faded until he gave her a look similar to hers. "Why do you say that? It's because Im a demon, ain't it? Dad always sad mortals were skittish."  
"No!" She threw her arms up. "Your ego is bigger than H*ll itself and you're a big jerk!"  
"Oh! Well, that's not a problem. I'm always like that.~"  
"Exactly." She side stepped around him and took a few steps. Something tapped onto the floor, but she kept walking.  
"Hey, Marge! Margy! C'mon! I wanted to talk to you!"  
She rolled her eyes. Helsing was more trouble than she would've liked. Talking only seemed to stroke his ego mo-  
"Margo! As prince I command you to STOP!!"  
She froze. A small silence followed before footsteps slowly approached from behind. She gulped down the lump in her throat and stared straight ahead. Did Helsing really just.....yell at her? He was a demon, and (as with all demons) he had a bad temper to match. But unlike most demons, Helsing preferred to show his anger through force than voice. Hearing him yell(not to mention use his prince title) was a rarity most wouldn't live to see.....  
Which meant she f*cked up.  
The footsteps continued until he came to a stop next to her. She didn't move.  
"Hey." His chill voice was back. "I just wanna talk."  
"........."  
"I'm serious. Why don't you like me? I'm not that 'bad'. Ask Lacey if ya don't believe me."  
".....I don't 'don't like you.' You just don't seem to get that I'm not interested in dating you." She gave him a side look.  
"Well, why not!?" He flared both arms at himself. "I know I'm not the most..." He gave a quick glance at his missing chunk of tail. "....-intact person, but I ain't ugly either. It's the related to the Devil thing, isn't it?"  
"......."  
"Margo. C'mon. Cut me some slack. Your silence act is killin' me."  
"You never told me why."  
"What?"  
She gave him another annoyed look. "Look. You are a PRINCE OF H*LL for crying out loud, Helsing. Hundreds of people would kill to be with you, and some of those people have a BETTER reason to be with you."  
"You really think those bimbos are worth my time?! You're more beautiful than they could ever be-"  
"That's my point!"  
Her sudden yell and volume made him lean back and blink. She gave him a look that meant defeat.  
"All I ever hear is beautiful this and beautiful that! And I hate it!" Margo stared him directly in the eyes. "I'm NOT some trophy wife to be paraded around on your arm like a prize winning horse!" She pointed at herself. "I happen to have a great personality and.....And I'm learning how to cook too! D*mmit!"  
He stayed silent and continued to stare at her angry, panting form.  
"......I know."  
He slowly smiled again. Though this time it seemed more real than usual. She gave an uncertain look at his sudden upbeat look.  
"Now that I know what's wrong, I can work on it! But between you n' me....I never saw you as eye candy."  
".....Is that supposed to be an apology?"  
He shrugged again and slung an arm back around her. "Take it as you want, Heart eyes.~ But, you still owe me for savin' ya.~"  
"Of course. What do you want."  
"A date."  
".....What?" She looked up at him. "Now?"  
"Nah. Julian's gonna get a date soon and I promised to tag along."  
"And I'm the tag along date?"  
"Exactly!"  
".....You're terrible."  
He only chuckled and buried his head into her hair.  
"I know."


	34. Get The Kids

The day of classes had gone by pretty casually.....unless you count Mr. Fabian coming to make sure he wasn't causing trouble again with Trevor. Now that only left one thing-  
"Baby."  
He slowly shifted his eyes from the book and paper I his hands and looked up at the female next to him. She smiled and cocked her head.  
"When do you want to start clean up duty?"  
Her sister slumped across the table across from them and groaned. "Why do we even have to do this? It's their fault we got in trouble."  
"Could be worse?"  
"........" She slowly lifted her head up to meet his calm eyes with a confused look. "Like how?"  
"We could be the ones cleaning the toilets. I offered for us to do the lab for a reason."  
"But the nerd club already cleaned it this morning-"  
"Precisely." He gave a fanged grin. "I have no time to deal with ridiculous distractions. My lessons are more important and my father would.......be very displeased."  
Neither decided to further question that statement. "It's that bad huh?"  
He chuckled dryly. "Worse than it sounds." He turned his blue eyes back towards the paper.  
The pencil he was using went back to writing across the homework sheet in his hands. Though not a bragger, he wouldn't deny that his sharp mind made doing homework much easier(though math still proved to be difficult at times) and faster to get done. Which left more time to focus on his other responsibilities his father and family bestowed upon him. Maybe that's why he was put in charge of his younger cousins rather than his reckless uncle. Speaking of which- He glanced at the clock on the wall. It read 1:33 p.m. . As it was a half day, his younger cousins should've been picked up half an hour ago by one of his Aunt Salem's brothers. Ribbon had said he'd swing by and get him soon.  
The door to the science lab creaked open and one of the teachers stepped in. She glanced curiously between the two girls and Winter.  
".......Ya'll done?"  
"Yes, Ms. Carrie," Zoey answered beside him.  
The demon cocked an eyebrow and looked around the room. ".....Ya'll did a decent job....Winter."  
"Yes, Ma'am?," he asked without looking up. He was a little busy finishing the last of his work.  
A series of giggles sounded out before a black and yellow blur rushed past her and into the room. It collided with him with an 'Oof!' and enough force to almost knock him out of the chair.  
"What the fu-?"  
"WINTER!!"  
Smiling fangs and yellow eyes shined up at him. He stared at his younger cousin in confusion before looking up at Ms. Carrie. Samson stood nest to her with a grouchy face and two backpacks in his arms. He rose a brow at them in question, but Bow only giggled and clutched his middle tighter. Making him look back at Carrie.  
She shrugged, "Yer uncle called and told us ta keep yer cousins her 'til he can get here. Don't know why. These two started hollerin' their heads off unless they saw ya."  
He just continued to just silently stare at her until Samson slowly trudged up next to him and dropped the bags. He went to Winter's other side and just silently slumped against him. Something he would often do only when he was drained.....or scared.  
His cold eyes flicked back to her. "Did my uncle say when he would come?"  
He shrugged again. "Dunno. Right now he's stuck in traffic."  
"Hmm. I see."  
Samson tilted his head up slightly at him. He felt his older cousin's hand wrap around his shoulders slightly. Despite his cold nature, Winter was far more affectionate than Castello......Which was just great.  
"Do you two have work to be finished?"  
"Bow has more than me since I already started on mine," he puffed proudly.  
"Hey!" Bow peeked over Winter's lap at her twin. "We both wanted WInter! Daddy said there was bad people he had to-"  
"Fire."  
Both looked up at Winter who stared with cold eyes at Bow.  
"Uncle Ribbon had to finally fire those lazy employees that worked his department. That would explain why he's so late. Isn't that right, Bow?"  
Bow blinked. "Fire?"  
"Yes. Fire, Bow." Samson narrowed his eyes at his twin. "You'll understand later."  
"Now in the mean time-" Winter changed the subject after giving Carrie a glance. "-both of you grab a chair. There's work to be done."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"F*CK!! SH*T!! AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN!!"  
A fist hit the dashboard of the normal looking sports car. The serpent attatched to it leaned back in the driver's seat with a growl of frustration Nosing honks and yells from other cars around them.  
"Panicking will only cause more problems."  
His many eyes turned to the taller cat beside him. He continued to stare straight ahead instead of at him. He'd never been able to tell any of Salem's brothers apart but this one was Antonio apparently. He briefly wondered how Castello could tell them apart. Personalities maybe?  
"Heh....YOU wouldn't understand. You're not a dad."  
He didn't answer.  
"......You're really quiet y'know. I don't see why you came along."  
"Someone has to make sure the children are safe if you mess things up."  
Ouch. And THERE was the burn.  
He grumbled and turned to look out the window. If he was gonna mess anything up, it would be the person who would be stupid enough to harm either of his wittle sweeties.  
......Or his nephew.


	35. Get The Kids P2

She shivered at the feeling of cold water on her face. Making her shake her head and look up in the mirror on the wall. Her cute features stared back at her.  
She scowled at her reflection. Scrunching her nose up in a way that reminded someone of an angry puppy. She gave off a growl and pushed her body away from the sink. It was the face that any sane person would be ashamed of. Too cute to be taken seriously for her age and too weird to be approached. It was one of the many reasons she was thankful for her twin and Winter. Though being the third wheel meant some awkward situations. It was worth it not to be constantly made fun of anymore.  
Guess her bathroom break had gone enough. She did promise Winter she'd help Samson with his work. She pulled the door open without a second thought.....and she quickly collided with someone just outside the door. They went to the floor with a yelp from her. She ended up in the awkward position of straddling the other's hips and her arms on either side of their head. Blue eyes met green ones as both stared silently at each other in shock. Eventually she moved first by squealing and rolling off him. Hopping to her feet and giving him a death glare.  
"Oh, it's YOU." She eyed the green dragon as he continued to stare up at her from the floor. "What were you even doing outside the girls' bathroom, you pervert!? UGH!!"  
Shaking his head frantically, he got himself up and stood up. Shaking his head 'no' again. Oh, god. This wasn't what she thought at all.  
She continued to glare daggers at him, crossing his arms. "Then what WERE you doing, huh?"  
He went to frantically start signing an apology sweating. All the while she watched him with a skeptical look.  
'No! Mom sent me to check on you, but I can't just walk into the girls bathroom. And I didn't want to rush you either, so I was just waitin-'  
"I don't-," she started catching his attention," -I don't understand sign language."  
He stared at her for a couple more seconds before holding his hands up in a 'Hold on' pose to feel around his pockets. Beads of sweat and embarrassment formed and his ears drooped. What a time to forget his pen and paper. He flashed her a nervous smile and his face lit up a bright red.  
Her face wasn't angry anymore, but annoyed and confused. He braced himself for the usual insults he got. 'You pervert!' 'Weirdo! Learn to talk like everybody else.' 'Freak!' 'You one of those silent killers, Mavy?-'  
"Did Ms. Carrie send you?"  
Her sudden question interrupted his train of thoughts as he stared blankly at her. She cocked her head to the right studying him.  
"You don't talk....but are you death too? Can you read lips?" Though one might consider these questions insulting, there was no malice behind those words. In fact, her face looked just genuinely curious. "Should I repeat the question?"  
He shook his head and pointed at his ears before giving a thumbs up to indicate he could hear just fine. His answer seemed to relax her somewhat.  
"Oh. So you can hear?" He nodded. "So your mom sent you?" He nodded again feeling relief wash over him. "Oh.....You know you could've just knocked, right?"  
He shrugged and gave a nervous smile.  
She sighed before dropping her arms to her sides and side stepper around him. "Fine. I'm done anyways."  
He turned to start walking behind her back towards the lab where his mother and other students were. He gave off a sigh of relief that this didn't turn into a full blown fight. He had the misfortune of that happening a couple times due to others' lack of knowledge of sign language.  
And with his crush no less.  
Walking behind her now made him rethink the advice Indigo had told him:  
"Take my advice....If you like someone, them tell her. Even though your mother and these two may disagree. If she doesn't return your feelings, then it's alright. Don't cling to something that won't happen.........And show respect for her dislikes."  
He had to admit it was pretty tempting to ask....if he wasn't such a sorry excuse for a dragon. He had no way of really talking to her without an actual voice or paper. Neither of which he had....Unless she asked him out, but that wasn't even a possibility-  
"Ouch!"  
She whirled around to once again glare at him. He froze at her sudden annoyed look. Did he do something wrong?  
"Excuse me. You're standing on my tail."  
She looked down, him following her gaze. Something red and squishy was under his boot. His eyes darted between her and the tail. She pulled her hips back lightly tugging it.  
"That really hurts you know."  
He whined and immediately lifted his foot from her tail. Reaching down to grab it to smooth down any misplaced fur. He strained a nervous smile and tried holding it out to her. She leaned away when he first thrusted it to her, but slowly took it.  
"Yeesh. You act like you broke it. Don't make such a big fuss." She looked down curiously at it.".....You really make a big deal out of stuff and-" She looked up. "-all nervous like. You act like a little kid with their first crush."  
Though she meant it good naturedly, he flinched hard at the sentence. Which didn't go unnoticed.  
"Hey, man. Are you ok?"  
He continued to stare at her....which was starting to freak her out a bit. He visibly gulped and nodded before raising a hand to slowly point at himself. She narrowed her eyes. What was going on? Was he trying to say something?  
"......You?"  
He nodded before putting both hands together in a familiar shape.  
"A heart?"  
He pointed at her. She stared at him for a good ten seconds......She dropped her long tail to the floor with a soft thump.  
"Ok! Whoa, whoa, whoa!" She held both hands up and backed away a few steps. "I'm not with you for five minutes and you're already trying to hit on my a$$!" Now she was angry. "UGH! It's the way I look isn't it?!"  
It was the same story all over again. Whenever she was alone minding her own business, some hormone driven idiot comes up and hits on her. Telling her how cute she was. How adorable she look. How sweet she was.....And she was sick of it! It also didn't help that her dad's reputation of being a retired playboy and flirt stuck to her.  
"Are you serious right now?! Dad was right about teenage boys. All they think about is f-"  
A hand grabbed hers but she wretched it away with a snarl.  
"Cute, cute, cute! Is that all I am to you perverts?!"  
He had leaned back when she first pulled away from him. Her beautiful blue eyes which he had first fallen for now shivered with water. It was like watching a sad ocean if that made any sense.  
"J-Just some cute n' fuzzy eye candy to hook onto your arm and show off!" She choked a hiccup and jabbed a thumb at herself. "I-I happen to have a personality thank you! I'm funny as h*ll, I'm good with kids, and....and I'm learning to dance! So..So there!"  
A warmth enveloped her and she felt him thrum against her in a hug. She froze....but made a choke sound and plopped her head on his shoulder.  
"I'm n-not a doll." She sniffed. "I'm not."  
He purred and hugged her in a comforting way. This.....wasn't exactly how he planned on going about it exactly, but she didn't outright reject him. Though the crying was unexpected.  
"Mavric!"  
He jumped and looked down the hallway. His mother leaned out of one of the doors giving them a look.  
"Am I interrupting somethin'?"


	36. Get The Kids P3

"Think real hard. Three times nine is?"  
The cheetah looked patiently as the young serpent racked her brain for the answer. Winter had already finished his work long ago, Samson right after. He was happy to see his ways rubbed off on his younger cousin. Yes. Samson would grow to be a loyal warrior. As for Bow.....  
"Twenty-seven?," she guessed looking at Zoey.  
Zoey gasped and patted her back. "That's right. You're getting better."  
Her encourageing words made Bow happy as she smiled and quickly wrote down the answer. It was easy to tell Bow took after Ribbon while Samson took after their mother. Perhaps it was because they were the same species, or maybe because Samson was always stuck under his watch and influenced by him. Now that Bow was as well, he had already thought of a purpose for her. His mother wouldn't be getting any younger and could use someone other than his father or 'employees' to keep her company. Another lady and family. Of course, Bow would need a proper education and lessons to be sure she became a proper lady and he'd have to slowly stop her from carrying that teddy bear everywhere, but it'd be worth it. It'd certainly keep her from the line of family business like everyone wanted. And that was for the best. Samson was the first to notice Jamie's return when his ears flicked and he turned to the door. Or course, he smiled and turned as well. But it soon turned to a frown when she came back in. From the way the vixen was sniffing and rubbing at her eyes was a dead give away. His eyes followed her as she resumed her seat in front of him, next to Samson.  
"Uh...*sniff* H-Hey." She smiled. He just stared at her. "Sorry Im late."  
"Don't be. What happened?" Straight to the point.  
She held up her hands. "Chill. I just needed a minute."  
"Hmm." He slowly looked over his shoulder to look at the doorway where Carrie was having a hushed conversation with her son. Making his eyes narrow.  
"Winter." She grabbed his sleeve, getting his attention. She gave her friend a firm look. "HE wasn't the problem. I've just been going through some stuff. Ok?"  
".......You can always talk to me."  
"I know, and I appreciate that."  
Her smile relaxed him somewhat, and he left the matter be,,,,,for now.  
"Winter." His eyes flashed to Bow. The younger snake smiled, showing off her giant fangs, before holding up a worksheet. "I'm done! Wanna see?!"   
Her proud smile didn't go unnoticed by him as he silently reached out a hand and took it from her. Bow excitedly latched onto his arm while jumping to her tip toes. Smile never leaving her face.  
His blue eyes scanned the paper before back at her. "....You did such a good job showing your work. Im very proud." She giggled as something tugged on his other arm. Winter gazed down with a raised brow at Samson. The young feline tilted his ears back.  
"Do....Do you wanna look at mine too?"  
"But of course." He lit up at Winter's words and instantly turned to his backpack.  
"Aw.~'' He glanced over and almost flinched back from how close Zoey had leaned. He didn't notice Bow crawl over his arm and into his lap. Zoey giggled at his slightly flushed face. "You're really good with kids."  
....He cleared his throat. "*a-hem* W-Well.....If Bow is going to be a proper lady, I must show her proper mannerisms-" Something white was suddenly shoved in front of his face. He blinked and leaned back.  
Samson huffed proudly next to him. "See?! It's perfected!......Right?"  
".......It's very good."  
"Ha! See?! I told you!"  
Bow stuck her tongue out. "Suck up!"  
"Snake eyes!"  
"Hairball!"  
Two hands latched onto them with a firm but gently grip. Both were jolted into looking up at the older serpent.  
"Enough."  
"....Yes, Winter." Samson backed down but not before shooting Bow a dirty look.  
Winter rolled his eyes and didn't see Samson's ears flick towards the hallway and his head turn.  
"Uh...Winter-"  
A flurry of frantic footsteps came from down the hallway. there was barely anytime to react before Ms. Carrie and Mavric were both shoved aside to the floor by someone bursting through the doorway. Carrie cursed at whoever pushed them over.  
"My babies!!"  
Bow let out a happy gasp. "DADDY!!"  
The girl jumped out of her cousin's lap and ran to the older snake's awaiting outstretched arms. He immediately picked her up and brought her to his face to plant a flurry of kisses to the giggling girl's cheek.  
"My little princess!" He let out a visible sigh and pressed their cheeks together. "Oooh~ Im finally here, and you're safe."  
Winter rose a brow and slowly stood up. Ribbon had finally arrived though quite rudely. Carrie had already gotten up and pulled her son to his feet and both were staring at them.  
Winter cleared his throat granting his Uncle's attention. "Uncle, was there a reason you had us stay HERE-?"  
An arm coiled around him and pressed him against Ribbon's other side. His blue eyes buldged from the tight grip his Uncle bestowed upon him. Bow laughed while still being suspended by Ribbon's other arm. More feminine giggles surfaced and with a groan, he realized that both sisters were laughing at his awkward family hug. His uncle continued hugging until a small paw latched onto his pants and tugged, making him look down.  
"Father, please refrain from choking Winter."  
His wish was granted and Winter was released. He made a cough noise and tried to regain any lost pride. Not a moment later, both twins were being held by their father being smothered in love. Samson (for once) didn't struggle, but instead bared it. Interesting.  
"Uncle Antonio!" Bow's shout startled everyone as she pointed at the new figure standing in the doorway.  
This rose Winter's suspicions more. One of Salem's brothers were here as well? What was going on?  
"Is that your girlfriend?"  
His train of thought was broken when his Uncle leaned to peer behind him. Zoey and Jamie's giggles made him freeze and eyes widen. His Uncle ever oblivious only smiled wider.  
"She's so pretty! Look at those spots. Why didn't you tell is she was here-?"  
"Uncle!" He could feel his eyelid twitching. "Don't you have something more important to do?"  
The serpent blinked his three eyes at him. ".......OH! Right! Kids, get your sh*t and let's go!" He lowered himself to let the twins scramble to the table. The girls began to help the pack their papers back into their little bags while he turned back to his Uncle. ".......What?"  
"Is there something I should know?"  
He froze. The intense look his nephew gave him made him start to sweat. ".....Castello may have a-.....uh....'problem' concerning your mother."  
''WHAT?!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The cold air was chilly against the two girls as they trudged home. Fortuneately, they had fuzz and warm clothes to keep them warm.  
"C-Cap. I thought you s-said it was gonna get warmer in January."  
Her green body shivered and her wings trembled behind her. On instinct, the pink fizz around her neck flared up more to cover her neck completely and half her face. Her cousin giggled at her natural response.  
"Yeah. That was BEFORE Crossbones told us there was six more weeks of winter." She shook her brown hair setting a few snowflakes loose. "It's not that bad, Could be worse."  
"Y-Yeah. Hellbent could start another fight with Trevor."  
"Hey! He slapped me first."  
The two cousins had made their way home despite Cappuccino's many comments about her fluffy appearance. Miracle was the first to walk up the pathway of their home, but stopped when Cap reached over to grab the door knob.  
"Hey. Why don't you think Aunt Carrie wouldn't let Mavric walk with us?:  
She shrugged. "I dunno. She's a grumpy one for sure."  
The door was thrown open with a bang that made Miracle flinch. She could never understand why she always had to insist on doing that. She must get it from Uncle Hatchet. She followed in and the first thing she did was shiver from the sudden warmth the house provided. She made to take off her coat but bumped into someone. Confused, she looked up into the back of her cousin, who seemed frozen to the spot.  
"Cap, it's cold. Could you move over?" She didn't respond so Miracle leaned over to peek over her shoulder. A couple of smiling faces greeted them.  
"Hi, Sweetheart."  
"MOM!!"  
Cappuccino was thrown aside as a green blur zoomed past her and into the white woman's arms. The couch jiggled when she tackled her mother and her Uncle Hatchet laughed. The two moth ladies death gripped eachother in a bear hug, but Miracle eventually pulled away and gave her mother a wide grin.  
"Where's Dad?" She gave a look around the living room, meeting the smiling faces of her Uncle and Aunt...and the slightly annoyed face of her cousin.  
"Yeah. Where is Uncle Fitch?"  
Hatchet coughed nervously and everyone gave each other looks. Miracle's smile slowly faded as she looked them over...then back to her mother.  
"He's not here, isn't he?"  
"Mmm.. No." Eve shifted uncomfortably. "He's here, buuuut...his work place called him. Something about a hospital emergency? He's been on the phone for hours no-"  
A door suddenly flung open, making everyone whirl around started just as another male came in, phone in hand. Upon seeing the two newer arrivals, he paused and stared straight at Miraccle. The two exchanged looks.  
"......DADDY!!"  
A whoosh of wings sent her flying towards the green dragon. He easily caught her smaller form(and somehow managed to not drop his brother's phone) wrapping both arms around her carefully as to not crush her wings. Miracle clung to her father like her life depended on it, burying her face into his shoulder and making a few chirp sounds. He cracked a small, rarely seen smile and a purr sound rumbled from his chest.  
"My Miracle."


	37. Back To the Studios

The drip on her was tight as the car continued to speed at an alarming rate. The whole situation happened so fast it felt almost like a nightmare, and she would've believed it was had it not been for the mafia family in the car with her and the nervous dragon death gripping her to the seat.  
While she swayed this way and that against Marx, the giant cats and snake seemed to be superglued to the soft seats they sat on. Probably because they were used to this. From between the swaying, she was able to see the Don. He merely stared at the woman now being cradled against his own body. Noone other than Marx seemed to notice her new limbs at the moment, if that's good or bad she didn't know. A sudden lurch to the left made Marx yelp and curl around her more. She winced at the sudden grip.  
"M-Marx. You're crushing me."  
He finally seemed to notice her situation but didn't loosen his grip. The screeches of tires and Marx's own heartbeats she heard against his side was the only things she could hear amongst the threatening silence. Her own body still felt pretty light except for her wings that seemed to weigh a ton. What if she lost too much blo-  
Oh sweet mary jane! She completely forgot about the wound on her leg....Again. She had to stop forgetting that. Escpecially if said thing was threatening-  
SCREE-!!  
The car screeched to a stop and if it wasn't for Marx's insane dragon strength, she would've flown into the lap of one of said giant cats. That didn't mean the sudden lurch forward that made her grip her husband and her stomach flip was fun. They ended up ramming back into the seat with a turkey sounding noise from Marx and someone giving a grunt of annoyance.  
"Nicolo?"  
The cat in the driver's seat turned his head to the side and it took her a moment to realize he must've been looking at the rear view mirror. After a moment of silence, he nodded and the door swung open before he stepped out. Pausing to look around slowly, his ears flickering in careful listening.....The door was yanked open startling the couple and Nicolo stuck his head in. How'd he move so fast?  
"It's safe to exit."  
"On with it then."  
One by one, the cats obeyed their master and got out of the car. Forming a half circle or gaurds outside the door. The Don emerged next, cradling his limp beloved like she was the most fragile thing in the world. And she just might've been right now. Juliet made a move to climb out, but paused when a clawed hand grabbed her shoulder and pulled her back. With a yelp she plopped back into the seat next to Marx. She gave him a scowl.  
"Are you crazy?!," he hissed through clenched fangs. He gently grabbed both her arms with panic in his yellow eyes. He gave off a nervous whine, "Your wings stick out more than a sore thumb."  
"Well, it's not like I can just pop them off. They're sorta fused to my spine." She paused for a moment. "....And I may be bleeding from my leg."  
"WHAT?!"  
She squealed as he latched onto her sore leg and listed it up to inspect the underside of it. The wound had long since stopped bleeding, but the heavy scent of Copper and dried blood still stuck to her. The adrenaline that had been pumping through his veins had driven his brain to focus mainly on making sure they didn't crash into the sides of the speeding car, but now they were in full protection mode. High alert that something would happen.  
"Marx!" Her voice got his attention as she scowled at him. "This isn't helping, Honey. And I can't just hide them forever. ..What are you doing?"  
He didn't answer as he unbuttoned his black overcoat, slipping it off to reveal his yellow shirt underneath. He shook it out a bit before throwing it around her. It fell over her shoulders and scrunched up wings easily as it was bigger to fit her bigger husband. It smelt like cigars and ink with a tinge she couldn't quite place. Carefully hooking his arms under her, he easily picked her up and held her against him. He was warmer than the outside air which was a great relief. He turned back towards the studios and began to speed walk up the steps.  
"As much as I'd like to go home now..." He sighed. "S-Salem's the closest thing to a medical expert we have, A-And I don't want to risk his anger."  
She knew exactly who's anger he meant and silently agreed they shouldn't risk it.  
When they entered, a few looked their way, but quickly looked away or didn't say anything. It was bad enough that one boss was p*ssed she guessed. Marx did his best to ignore the many curious glances but she could tell he felt very uncomfortable and didn't blame him as she too felt it. She guessed they must've been heading to his office because he carried her past Castello's known office (one of Salem's brothers was already guarding the outside and watched them go by. She couldn't tell which one he was though) and went straight to the door to his office a few hallways down. Opening it and walking straight in. He set her down on top of his desk, and took a moment to finally breath.  
"Marx." She looked at him with concern in her eyes."....Who was the attacker?"  
He gave her a dry chuckle before turning and plopping down on the seat next to her.  
"The h*ll if I know. Probably one of Castello's enemies hopin' for a leg up on him.''  
"Oh."  
They sat in silence until he glanced at her leg and gently reached a hand to place on it.  
"H-How does you leg feel?"  
She looked at it. "Sore, but it feels a lot better than it do an hour ago......In fact, it stopped hurting."  
He rose a brow at this. "That doesn't sound right. You should be in pain. I know wounds...D-Don't ask me how. I've lived a painful life-"  
"Marx," she gently cut him off before he could start another one of his long rambles," Maybe you should calm down. You're stressing-"  
"Let me see."  
"What?"  
His face hardened. "Let me see it. You could've lost blood a-and n-not be able to feel it because your body's numb."  
"Numb? I don't feel- MARX!!"  
The dragon tossed the coat she was wrapped in aside and grabbed her leg again before hoisting it up to examine the underside of her thigh. Her face immediately flared red and on instinct her hands flew down to pull at her skirt. She scowled at him and was about to scold him for the awkward position they were in....but stopped when she noticed the confusion on his face. His brow rose higher and he looked at her....then at her leg...then back to her.  
"W-What? Did it get worse?"  
"No...Nothing's wrong."  
This made her confused. "Then why are you looking at me like that?"  
His eyes darted between her leg and face again. "there's....no cut."  
.....She blinked. "Marx. Don't joke. I felt it, and I've been bleeding since I got it."  
He gave off an offended sqwuak and scowled. "I am NOT lying. Do you really think I would lie about something like this?"  
His face was all the answer she needed. "Ok. Maybe you're tired-"  
"No! There's blood yes. A big...*gag* red spot," he insisted glancing back to the red spot on her leg, "Are you sure this isn't just...something that spilt on you?"  
"Honey, if something spilt on me then it would've been all over my leg. Not just the back."  
Another moment of silence followed.  
Eventually the dragon shook his head before slowly releasing her leg to rub his face. "Something weird is going on. And I don't like it."  
"What are we gonna do?"  
"I'll tell ya what?" He pointed at her. "Y-You're gonna go home and STAY home as soon as I leave. W-We tell no one about this! Ok? No one. A-And absolutely no showing wings."  
She rose a brow. "Wouldn't Castello get suspicious? Marx-" Her look steeled. "THAT man is not easily fooled."  
"I-I'll tell them you didn't recover all the way yet a-and the cut on your leg needs to heal....He'll probably be too busy with the misses to notice anyways-"  
"And if he does?"  
"........."  
Before he could answer, the door slammed open revealing the smiling purple haired dragon behind it.  
"Mr. Marx! I heard you were back-"  
He froze upon seeing the awkward position the couple were still in and their flustered red faces. His face flushed in turn as he fumbled.  
"O-Oh!...Was I-?"  
"It's not what it looks like!!"


	38. Back To The Studios P2

The whole air was silent as death within the small bedroom he shared with his wife as said wife was calmly asleep on the queen sized bed. She looked like she could wake up any moment, but that sadly wasn't true.  
"Boss."  
His yellow eyes slowly turned to look at the tall cat next to him  
"The children arrived."  
"......Tell Winter I want to see him. Now. Where's the demon?"  
The cat blinked. "She took off with her brother a day or two ago."  
"When she gets back bring her to me."  
"Yes, Sir."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After Winter and his cousins were picked up, the two girls had been retrieved by Fabian and were walked the rest of the way home by him. Upon arriving, they noticed Zechariah wasn't anywhere to be seen....again. But being the children of a Peacekeeper, they received the news faster about the hospital and assumed he was dealing with that stuff again. Which left Mavric and his mother. Currently the two were lounging around in her living room like office waiting for his father to come around so they could all leave together. Which was strange. His parents usually let him walk his younger friends and cousins home without a problem. So what was wrong now?  
He gazed up at his mother who looked back.  
"....Don't give me that look. You don't know what Im trying to do."  
Frowning, he stood up from his sitting position and faced her in her large armchair. Raising his hands to sign, "No I don't. You haven't let me go out or leave your side for more than two days now. What's wrong?"  
His mother continued to stare before she sighed and looked away. "You'll see soon enough."  
Snap! Snap!  
A series of snaps from her son got her attention as he made her look at him again. He frowned at her stubbornness. But she forgot he could be just as stubborn.  
"You're not giving me any real reason to believe you. I'm responsible and all of a sudden you're treating me like a lost puppy. What are you so worried about?"  
A moment of silence passed as the two stared at each other. But after a moment, she opened her moth to say something-  
BAM!!  
The slamming of the door opening made them jump and whirl towards the intruder.  
"HI, CARRIE!!"  
Carrie groaned and shrank back in her armchair. "Hello, Malcom."  
The blind dragon came right in still talking. "Hi, Honey. Oh, boy! You won't believe what happened today. This one student kept loosing balance in midair so I had to keep the net up, but he broke the net so I had to keep catching him. Yep! Definitely gonna have to work more with him. *sniff sniff* Is that the scent of our little boy I smell?!"  
While himself and his father both shared disabilities(him being death and his father being bling) that made it difficult to communicate with each other, they still managed to have some kind of connection . Mostly him talking nonstop while Mavric listened. Malcom gave off a happy thrum before walking over to them, extending an arm to feel around until he touch Mavric's arm. Pulling the younger dragon closer into a crushing hug.  
"Mmmmmmm! My little boy's getting bigger! Just like your little cousins! I love my family so much! Speaking of family, did you know your Uncle Fitch stopped by a couple days ago?!"  
He froze....before looking at his mother. Carrie was frozen in her seat. When she met Mavric's gaze she looked down.  
"Zechariah said the Safe Haven's Council's Assigning a patroller to all the schools, and hospitals, and stuff. Your Uncle Fitch asked for our school personally. Isn't that great?! Family getting to spend more time together-"  
Anymore of his father's ramblings were forgotten as he stared at his mother......then it all clicked.  
His mother and uncle never really gotten along that great before (his mother being a demon and his uncle a demon hunter) and he was pretty distant towards them both. It would've explained why his mother was keeping him from going anywhere near his Uncle Hatchet's place. But now he had a problem concerning safety. And not his....  
Indigo.


	39. Back To The Studios P3

He wasn't told a single thing on the very fast car ride back home. (to which his cousins clung to him for dear life) This wouldn't be the first time they were spontainiously pulled away from school, but if his uncle refused to tell him, then it was serious.  
When they arrived, there was already a tense aura around the studios he rose a brow at. But he was already trained by his father to keep a straight face during things like this. What he didn't expect was his Aunt Salem personally coming up to him and taking him aside to tell him the news personally about his mother. He was livid and happily went with her when his father summoned him. He was a little apprehensive to see him in his parents' bedroom of all places, but complied as he didn't want to anger his father anymore than he might've already been. But seeing his mother there, just like a lifeless lump, with his father silently standing over her...His stomach dropped faster than a stone in water.  
"Get in. Close the door behind you." He didn't turn to look at him.  
Winter immediately did as he was commanded and soon it was just them with one of Salem's brothers standing guard in the corner.  
".....Do you know why you're here?"  
"You wished to talk to me about Mother and the recent attack on our family." That must've been the reason. He couldn't think of anything else he could've wanted to talk about.  
"Correct." His head turned and finally those deadly gold eyes looked at him. "You are the sole heir to the entire Serpent Family empire that I have ran like your grandfather before me and his father before him....And everyday our connections and empire has slowly only gotten stronger with every generation." He fully turned to his son. "And you are no exception."  
His eyes widened slightly when his father advanced towards him.  
"At your young age, you have already made a name for yourself, secured a bond to get in within the PeaceKeepers' ranks, and your mind is almost to a point to where I can consider it decent." He stopped right in front of him. His gaze tearing into his soul. "But you are far from ready. You're still too young and not equipped to take on any of my duties....Which is why you are forbidden to leave here or that school's protection until I get this taken care of...You are an easy target to these desperate fools and I only have ONE son...Do I make myself perfectly clear?"  
"Yes, Father. Perfectly."  
"Good. You're dismissed." He turned to-  
"And mother?"  
He stopped. "Don't you worry about her. I already have something in mind. Now....You are dismissed." He turned away which gave Winter the hint to leave.  
He waited until his son has closed the door behind him and a few minutes after to make sure he left before sighing.  
".....Nicolo. Where's the girl?"  
"She took her brother out two days ago," the tall cat answered, "I don't know where they went, only that she said they would be back tomorrow afternoon."  
He hissed in frustration. "When that lunatic gets back, you bring her straight to me. I want to see what she can really do."  
"Yes, Sir."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The sun had almost begun to set as the two made their way down the almost deserted streets,  
"Shouldn't we he heading back to the studios now? It's been a while."  
The girl beside him chuckled but didn't look at him. "Oh, we don't have to be back until tomorrow. And I did say I would visit my other brother while here.....And you know that I'm a demon of my word.~"  
He gave her a look. "If you say so."


	40. Back To The Studios P4

Rave lights in all different colors flashed throughout the bar. Loud music blared and an eye sore of colorful wolves danced their trails off to it. It was enough to make his senses hurt really. How his sister's brother could stand it was beyond him. He got pushed and shoved as he tried to stay on Queeny's tail. For some reason she was having better luck pushing everyone away. Probably because she went here more often.  
"Queeny, slow down! I can barely walk in here! OW! My wing!"  
He clutched the wing someone stepped and grumbled something under his breath. FINALLY, his sister stopped and turned around with an amused grin. Her high pitched laughter was easily heard over all the noise somehow.  
"You should've said something sooner if you were having trouble, Sweetie.~"  
He yelped when she suddenly grabbed his hand and began to pull him along with her. With Queeny's strength, it was easier to push past everyone.  
"Where are we even going?"  
"Chesire's scent is coming from this direction, and this is the fastest way to him in my disguise. I'd rather not draw unwanted attention to you," she stated as if it was oblivious, "Besides....I doubt Castello would like it if I came back all bloody."  
He didn't say anything else as they finally got though the ungodly crowd. He felt himself finally beginning to relax. Big crowds weren't really his thing, but being with Queeny always made it easier to deal with. She still held his hand and gently tugged him to get him walking again. They were on the far side of the place now and a row of tables lined the walls. Seperated from each other by a smaller wall between them. She started leading him to the far side towards one table in particular. He recognized the two from other visits Queeny dragged him into.  
The two didn't notice them at first, but then the male of the two looked up and an instant grin spread across his face. He stood up when they got close enough.  
"Queeny.~" He held his arms out in greeting. "How long has it been? Almost a year I think. If I'd known you were coming, I would've gotten you something to eat.~"  
His sister cackled before finally letting his hand go and giving her other brother a smile. "Still clinging to the best friends with benefits I see.~ How's the dog?"  
The blonde wolf at the table rolled her eyes. She's gotten used to Queeny's strange way of talking by now. Her gaze went to Hannibal and she smiled. Leave it to Queeny to drag him to these meet ups.  
"And I see you brought Hannibal." He flinched when Chesire looked at him. Those Pink and red eyes always weirded him out. "....And what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?"  
Queeny grinned. "We were in the area and I just thought we'd stop by....and have a little private chat." She pointed to Hannibal without looking at him or letting anyone respond. "I believe Hannibal is tired from our little journey. Why don't your friend here let him sleep in that guest room you have tonight?~"  
There was a small silence between the four.  
".......Straight to the point I see. Very well. Hannibal may stay in my room for the night." He turned to the werewolf that was still sitting down. "Star, my beautiful light.~ Would you take Hanna to my usual sleeping courters? I need to have a talk with Queeny for a moment."  
"I get it." She gave him a smile and wink before standing.  
Queeny snapped towards Hannibal. "Go with her and stay there until I come and get you...Now."  
Knowing not to argue, he went with Star when the wolf took his hand and slowly pulled him away. The two watched them go before Chesire looked back to her.  
".....Why do I feel that this isn't just a social call?"  
She giggled. "It's not, Dear.~" She went to sit down in Star's old spot and crossing her legs. "It's more of a warning deliverly, Sweetie.~"  
"Warning, eh?" He gave an interested hum and sat down across from her. "Do tell."  
She smiled wider. " Obviously you must know of the current situation with everyone taking naps."  
"I've heard of it. Why?"  
She gave a wide smile that almost broke her human disquise. "Things are going to get very interesting.~"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He was glad that Star didn't make him go through the crowd again, but he still didn't feel comfortable with all these people around. She lead him around the dancers and into a hallway off the right side of the building. The further they went, the softer the music and cheers became quieter much to his pleasure. The doors on either side of the hallway were all closed, so he was slightly surprised when she stopped and opened a door. She smiled and let go.  
"Here ya go." She stepped aside and smiled.  
He gave a curious look inside. The room wasn't really unordinary. It looked like any typical hotel room to him.  
"The shower and bathroom's to the right," she said pointing through the doorway to another door that could have been mistaken for a closet, "And if you're bored, the TV works."  
"Thanks," he said bluntly. Kinda annoyed that Queeny wasn't with him.  
Star must've picked up on his mood because she asked, "Do you want some company?"  
He shook his head. "No. Go back to your thing....Just tell Queeny I want to see her as soon as possible."


	41. Back To The Studios P5

So....Let me get this straight. You basically survived a desperate mafia attack with a helicopter and missiles, got kidnapped from the hospital, and now your cut magically vanished?....And all this happened within one day?"

Juliet slightly winced when Victor Practically laid out her entire day. When said out loud, it sounded like a bad sci-fi movie script Marx had to deal with. But Nope. That actually happened. She had actually survived an attack between two mafia gangs, and her body had somehow healed itself within that time without any medicine, stitches, or magic. Her mind was still having trouble processing this whole thing. Her nervous dragon of a husband was now sitting at his desk, rubbing his already tired looking face and didn't really say much after explaining their entire day to the younger dragon.She couldn't really blame him about being worried like he was. (Not to mention all the work piled on him with this whole big movie premeire being weighed down on him) His coat was still wrapped around her (how on earth it didn't tear when she stretched it over her giant wings she never knew) and it made her feel somewhat more comfortable having something familiar around her.  
"T-This is....s-strange." The purple haired dragon turned to the only female in the office with a sympathetic look. "W-What are you going to do?"  
She froze in thought...before shaking her head. "I don't know. I just hope everyone's ok."  
They both knew she was talking about the hospital. It was just her nature to worry about those around her even if they were 'questionable' or if she barely even knew them. It was one of her sweetest qualities but it was also one of her biggest weaknesses. Proven with her encounter with Baltimore.  
Marx placed a hand on her arm in an attempt to comfort his wife. "Honey, Im sure the professionals are taking care of if....But right now we should focus on OUR problems first-"  
"Especially since your both going to be reported missing by the hospital when everything's sorted out."  
Silence.  
Marx had frozen at Victor's words and stared at them like a deer in headlights. He eventually swallowed the lump in his throat he didn't know he had and unconsciously grabbed around Juliet's forearm....He didn't even think about that! Well, no. That wasn't true. He knew about the idea of that some could notice them taking the girls, but he guessed it really didn't sink in until now. And now that it did, a new wave of terror washed over him like a land slide. Exactly how many people saw them?! Did anyone catch thm-? Oh, sh*t! Would that PeaceKeeper notice them gone?! And what about those nutty priests?!  
He had a bad feeling about all this-  
"Sweetheart. You're hurting my arm."  
He blinked and managed to look at Juliet. She was giving him a patient but pained look and glanced at her arm. Getting the hint, he slowly loosened his grip on her. She gave off a sigh and smiled.  
"Thank you, Sweetie. But maybe next time if you want to use me for stress relief...wait until we get home.~"  
Victor gave off a snort beside them which made Marx look at him in confusion. They could practically hear the wheels turning in his head before it finally clicked. His face turned red as a cherry and a cross between a sqwuak and a squeak came out. Causing Victor to snort more into his hand, making his boss's face heat up more.  
"Oh! SHUT UP! L-Like you and Strawberry don't do the s-same things!," he shouted. He felt like his face would melt off from the heat he gave off, "D-Did you make sure Quivor got those scripts?" He tried changing the subject.  
Victor nodded still giggling. "I...*a-hem* gave them to her this morning.''  
He nodded his head. "Good...Speaking of morning-'' He turned around in his chair to face the window. The Sun had already set and darkness had set in. "....It's late, I had a long day, I'm tired, and I don't feel like dealing with anymore sh*t tonight." He looked back at Victor. "Ms. Strawberry's probably wondering where you are. Go finish your work and go home."  
"Yes, Sir....Will you two be ok?"  
"As long as she keeps that coat on and our mouths stay shut."  
Victor was the first to leave. Followed by the couple after a few minutes to make sure everything was set for tomorrow. Marx made sure to lock the door Behind them to keep any unwanted guests out. The two hurried down the hall with Marx encouraging her to walk faster. She still wobbled a bit, not used to the sudden twenty- five pounds added to her back, but thankfully she was held up somewhat by Marx.  
Also thankfully, there wasn't many people around after hours and they got to the front doors quickly. Though they didn't see the suspicious blue eyes watching them from the shadows.


	42. Hell Palace Residents

The residents of the H*ll Royal Palace were having a pretty normal day (or what could be considered a normal day in hell). Though this particular night (or day. You couldn't really tell time down there) there was a little fuss among some of the children-  
"I can't believe you agreed to go on a date with that nutcase!," the boy angrily pouted and glared at the older girl across the room.  
She was busy trying not to burn herself as she labored over the hot stove in front of her. The smell of food filled the air along with the sound of metal. The kitchen was empty now besides herself, Raven, and two other young demons. With her job as one of the assistant caretakers for the h*ll palace children, it was her responsibility to help raise and care for the children. Even if two of them were just a couple years younger than herself. She could hear Indigo helping Lacey with her homework on the table behind her.  
She turned and gave the boy a look. "I know. Besides, he did help me out."  
"Does your mother know you're disrespecting the prince?" They both turned to Indigo who was side glaring at the other boy. His red eyes narrowed. "Helsing may be a bit.......different from others, but she's right." He relaxed a bit and straightened up. "Helsing got her out of a very possibly dangerous situation and -whether we like it or not- he expects something in return. He's the prince and her boss's son. It's not like she can just say no."  
Raven snorted. "He's just trying for an excuse to get in her pa-"  
SLAM! "Helsing's not bad!"  
Everyone flinched as Lacey tore her red eyes into Raven. If there's one thing Lacey was, it was quiet and usually skittish, but there was one thing she clearly spoke out against. And it was yelling at anyone that spoke against her older cousin. Raven more often than anyone got this side of her because of his distaste towards Helsing.  
He just stared at Lacey before sighing and holding up his hands in defeat. "Ok, ok. Have it your way. He's not bad, but he sure as f*ck annoying."  
Lacey scowled at him further. "Helsing's NOT annoying! He's just an overprotective egdelord teddy bear!"  
Everyone remained silent. While the edgelord (and overprotective to some extent) were pretty much true, the teddy bear routine was reserved strictly for her. The little cousin turned adopted sister.  
".....Sure. Whatever the princess wants."  
"Soup's ready." To hopefully end the tention, she went to get everyone some dinner. Less yelling with full mouths. Soon bowls were set and the delicious smell of food clogged their noses. "Here. Now no more arguing. You should finish then go to bed." A pause. "Raven. Quite moping and come eat."  
The boy grumbled, but pushed himself off the wall and came over to the table and sat down.  
She pushed a bowl at him before turning away. "Put the leftovers away when you're done. I'm going to bed."  
Raven gave a dry chuckle before grabbing his spoon to bring to his mouth. "Watch your back. The f*cker doesn't exactly know that the word no exists."  
"Actually, I'm rather fond of the word."  
Any food in Raven's mouth was spat out in surprise and a small coughing fit followed. Everyone looked to the doorway with mixed emotions. Mixed being Raven looking horrified, Lacey suddenly happy, and the other two surprised. The red demon watched amused as Raven continued to cough slightly from the doorway.  
"Helsing!"  
In a blur of purple, Lacey raced from the table and rammed into her older cousin with a hug. The older demon didn't even flinch when she football style tackled him. Instead, he smiled wider and reached a hand down to pat her head then looked over at Margo.  
"So....you're not with the moth?"  
She stared at him confused until Indigo spoke.  
"No. The princess has been asking me to help with her math lately. I haven't been able to get any spare time between my studies, my duties to you, and Ms. Hilda's h*ll lessons. Haven't you been doing your duties?"  
He shrugged still looking at Margo. She shifted shyly and looked down. His eyes on her was starting to get weird.  
"Right, right." His lidded look widened. "Anyways, I came because I heard my name. Y'know what they say. Speak of the Devil and Devil shall appear....Or his grandson." He shrugged. "Depends on who's talkin' 'about me." He glanced at the harpy (who was glaring at Helsing's with bared fangs) for a brief second. "But, I finally wanted to talk with Margy for a minute."  
She froze up for a brief moment, but looked up when Helsing came walking in stopping right front of her. Lacey was giggling and hanging off his waist, but he acted like he didn't care. He smiled and pulled something out of his pocket and almost thrusted it at her. She had to lean back to look at it properly.  
"I talked to Tenta after our chat and found out this wasn't the first time someone put their hands on ya." It might've been just her, but his smile seemed to widen slightly. "I can't be there all the time, but if ya wear this....I can guarantee they'll leave ya alone."  
In his hand was THE strangest necklace she'd ever seen. The large choker was black with a red cut ruby in the middle. Two strands were attatched to the bottom of it that held another red stone with a strange symbol she'd never seen before carved into it.  
She blinked. "Oh....What is it?"  
"Something that let's others that you're not to be touched. Lacey has one too. She wears it when Indy's not with her."  
"Is it some kind of magic charm or something?"  
He shrugged. "It's something. But I promise you won't regret using it."  
She smiled and reached for it-  
"Just like that? I don't think so." The harpy growled flexing his wings. "Nothing you give is free...so what's the catch this time? There a love spell on it-?"  
"THAT happens to be the same kind of jewelry Lacey wears, Raven." Indigo glared at the boy in front of him. The very last thing he needed right now was another fight between these two and in the kitchen of all places. "Ms. Jill wears one similar as does Queen Narissa. Obviously it's meant to protect the one wearing it and right now I'm too tired to care about lady's jewelry."  
Raven grumbled but didn't say anything else.  
"Will you accept it?"  
Helsing's sudden voice snapped Margo back to attention as he nudged the necklace closer. Eventually she smiled and out for-  
She flinched as he suddenly snapped up. The next thing she knew the necklace was carefully draped across her neck.  
"Oh...Uh..Thank you."  
She didn't see the strange look in his eyes.  
"Anything for a friend.~"


	43. The Slow Truth

Morning light bled through the windows that lead into the bedroom she shared with her cousin. Causing her to stir in the lower part of the bunk bed.

"Hey, Mirry. Wake up. It's Friday so school's still on"

The lump under the blanket moved and groaned until a green head poked out with fluffy bed head. Her green eyes narrowed at the smirking girl standing over her, arms crossed, and already groomed to perfection.

"....What time is it?," she asked groggily and turned to the alarm clock next to her......Six o'clock. "Why didn't the alarm go off?"

"It did-" She looked back up at her. She shrugged. "But you just set it too early I guess and now I'm up. So you should wake up too." She smirked wider when Miracle flopped back down onto her pillow with a groan. "You better hurry. Mom's already made breakfast."

After a few seconds of debating whether or not she should stay in the warm bed, she got up and did the regular routine of getting ready for school, grabbing her bag, and trudging down the stairs towards her Aunt's kitchen.To be honest, she didn't eat much of her Aunt Eve's cooking. Veggies and fruit were fine, but she'd rather have eggs and bacon or a good omelet. But it was pretty unlikely as Hatchet usually slept in...and honestly couldn't cook beyond burning something until it was edible. Yeah. Cooking wasn't his strong point. Then again, he did try his best with raising her and Cappuccino. Her footfalls must've alerted them because by the time she got down there, there was already a plate of- you guessed it- lettace waiting for her...How lovely. Her cousin was already sitting at the table next to-

"Mom?" She stopped and stared at the older moth woman who smiled upon noticing her. Before dropping her bag, running around the table, and practically throwing herself at her. She honestly thought last night was a dream it felt so unreal. She leaned back and looked at her. "Where's Dad? Is he still sleeping?"

Misk's smile dropped."Oh, I'm sorry, Sweetheart. But he left a while ago."

".....Already? But he just got here."

"It can't be helped." She looked back over at her aunt who had just placed a bowl of more greens on the table and gave a sorry smile. "he was called by the Districts Council..And he's going to talk with a Peacekeeper. Things like that can't wait. Sit down and eat your food."

The rest of the breakfast was pretty disappointing to say the least. Miracle almost didn't smile when the rest of their friend group met up. Key word being almost. Hellbent tripping over his own tail trying to greet Cappuccino was too funny to pass up laughing at. Poor guy. the rest of the walk was pretty uneventful. The normal pile of busy students and rowdy bullies and insane amount of chattering. That was all stopped within a second when someone grabbed her shoulder, made her jump, and look behind her.

"Mavric!" She relaxed upon seeing her older cousin. "Don't do that."

The older dragon gave a quick look around and began to tug her to the side. She stumbled a bit and gave him a confused look.

"Mavric, what are you doing?" Immediately his hands flew in front of him, frantically signing away....She grabbed his hands to stop him. "I can't understand you when you talk so fast. Slow down."

"....Better?"

She nodded. "Better. Now what's wrong with you?"

He looked even more worried if possible and signed, "Your dad's here."

"Oh! Yeah. They got here yesterday-" Two hands grabbed her shoulders and shook her. "Hey! What's your problem?!"

He shook his head. "No. Uncle Fitch is HERE. Right now."

She stared at him......"What?! Why?"

''He's talking to Mr. Zechariah. I don't know why."

Her dad was here?! At her school!? What was he doing there? No. No. Don't panic. Mr.Zechariah was a PeaceKeeper, not just a teacher, which meant he must deal with non-school related stuff too....Yeah. That must've been the reason- The snapping of fingers in front of her face stopped those thoughts and brought her back to reality.

"Where's Indigo?"

....She blinked."He's not here?"

"I thought he was with you guys."

"No. I thought he was already here."

Indigo wasn't here? She sure hoped he was sick today and didn't get caught up in any unwanted trouble. Like running into her dad. A demon hating guard for the Districts-

"Hey! You two."

The two jumped and spun around to the face of their friends. One being-

"Indy!" The poor demon barely had time to react before the smaller moth dragon tackled him. Good thing he was heavier with his cybernetics. He gave her a confused look and reached up to pat her back.

"Uh. Good morning to you, too. You seem happy today."

"You don't know the half of it."

He rose a brow. "Mind including me in then?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~'

"So....You're father, whom I have never met, works for the council and frequently hunts demons for sport?" Miracle shrunk under his gaze. "And I'm just now learning that?"

"Um...I didn't want to worry you?"

"Well, I'm concerned now."

She winced more and hunkered down under his eyes. His body was calm but his eyes didn't lie. They were hurt.

"What would YOU have done then?" All eyes turned to Crossbones who was doodling away in his book as usual. "If I remember right, you didn't tell her that your parents work for the Devil until your mom brought you lunch. Seems someone's being a hypocrite."

Since it was another half day and Friday, classes were slow or just 'free talk' time with their friends. Though leave it to Crossbones for being the honest freak.

He sighed. "I just wished she would have told me sooner considering that I might now be in possible danger-"

"I'm sorry! OK!?" Her loud voice made everyone look at her. She froze, mumbled out a sorry, and shrank down further into the pink fluff surrounding her face.

"...I know. And it's alright."

She poked out a bit from her fluff. Indy was....giving her a half smile. Reaching a hand over to squeeze hers.

"How about this? I won't keep anymore secrets from you and you don't keep any from me. Ok?"

".....Ok." She slowly poked her head back out with a smile.

"In fact...I'd like to meet your parents."

"WHAT?!"


	44. The Slow Truth p2

It all happened so fast. He wanted it all to be just a nightmare when he woke up. That would've been a huge relief to see. He almost thought it was too, except when he woke up something soft but firm smacked him in the face, sending him toppling over the side of the bed and onto the floor with a started turkey squabble and thump. He groaned and sat straight up only to face the fluffy white wing of a bird.

"Honey? Are you ok?" His wife looked down at him with a concerned and apologetic face. "I-I'm so sorry. I didn't know they would snap like that."

"No, no," he grunted when he got up holding his face where he was smacked. Standing up and stretching his still very tired body. "I probably needed to get up anyways."

She still smiled apologetically as he trudged off towards their shared bathroom. Watching as he went in and closed the door behind him. A few quick minutes later, he was fully dressed in that familiar suit she knew all too well and making his way over towards her. 

"Hey. How do you feel?"

"I feel...better. A lot less tired than yesterday." She pulled the sheets back and swung her legs over the side pretty quickly. Standing up to her feet- Before stumbling and falling back from the new weight added to her back. She paused for a moment before sitting up and looking at him. "Well, other than gravity having a thing against me."

He sighed and shook his head. "Alright....We need to figure out what to do with...with..those things-" He gestured to the fluffy wings on her back. "-and quickly. I-I can only lie about you still being hurt for so long y-y'know." He hissed and reached both hands up to claw his hair before slowly dragging them down his face. "Uuuuuhh. How do I get myself into these things?" 

"Couldn't you just tell them I have avian blood? I mean, I'm probably the least angelic person around her."

He dry chuckled. "I'm not so sure about that, Honey. B-But those marks-" He pointed at the tips of the wings. At the t like markings on each of them. "I've seen a lot of weird looking creatures including bird things, and I have NEVER seen anything like that on a wing. Or someone's wings just randomly bursting out of someone's back. I...I have a bad feeling about this. Something's not right."

"Marx. You're worrying too much again." She grabbed onto the small table beside the bed before slowly hoisting herself up on wobbling feet and looking at him. "Nothing bad has happened."

He cocked a brow. "The bombing of the hospital, crazy pastors, and random wings exploding from your back isn't anything to worry about?"

"They weren't after me. They were after Castello's wife. I just happened to be in the same hospital."

"You could have been KILLED?!" He was too tired to deal with his wife's bright side view today. "I KNOW you weren't. I know you're safe now...Well, safe-ish. A-And if they were THAT desperate enough to bomb a hospital in plane daylight, then you don't need to be around them right now."

"Marx. What are you saying?" 

"I'm saying you NEED to lay low for a while. Until this all blows over."

She gave him what he could be describe as a puppy dog face but he knew he had to put his foot down with this. Not just for his sanity, but for her safety if not his. There would be no ifs, ands, or buts this time.

"You're probably going to be on the 'missing list' when everything calms down. Which means they-" He pointed at nothing in particular before pointing to the floor. " -are going to come here o-or our work and question why you aren't at the hospital, then I'm going to half to think of something so we don't get arrested for kidnapping you. A-A-And then there's those two...nutjobs spreading their 'miracle' and the last thing I need is Castello finding out-" He began to pace as he ranted. "- a-and then he's going to question that. A-And he hates angels! For f*cks sake, Juju!" He stared at her as he paced. "He works with f*cking demons! If he found out I didn't tell him-...I-If he finds out I lied to him...He'll...*gulp* A-A-And what about F-Fitch?"

"Fitch?" Her brother-in-law? "We haven't seen him in years."

"I-It doesn't matter, Jewel. Ounce he hears what happened, he'll be on our tail faster than bees to flowers! Y-You don't know what he's c-capable of. And if Castello finds out any S.H.D.P. agents are snooping around-"

"S.H.D.P. ?" She cocked her head to the side in confusion.

"Safe Haven's District Patoon. H-He's been trying to bust Castello for years. A-And he'll take any opportunity to snoop around." He gulped again. "E-Even at the expence of family-"

"Alright. Calm down." She let go of the table and half stumbled half walked her way slowly towards him. "What do you think we should do?"

He froze....before shaking his head. "I....I don't know. B-But right now we'll stick to you being hurt and staying home re-recovering. I'll have to think of something as we go along....W-We could die those markings white! Y-Yeah!" His face lit up at the new idea. "We'll die them white! All white! They'll blend in good enough and until we can have them removed!"

"...Removed?" She gave him a look. "Marx, you want to remove my wings? Like...amputation?"

"D-Do you have any other ideas? If we remove the wings, we remove the problem. If we hide those markings, we hide any angel rumors! Bam! Problems solved!...SH*T!!"

He lunged at her as she once again leaned backwards from the weight on her spin, and managed to grab her arms just in time. Pulling her up straight once again. She sighed in relief and he gave her a "See? Told you." look.

"And we also get you back on your feet."

"I...I see what you mean."

He sighed. "Jewel. Just promise me. Just this one time. Please! Please just listen to me."

She stared at him for a good while, before sighing and closing her eyes. "If that's what you want."

He happily sighed and gripped her tighter in a hug before reaching down and lifting her up bridal style. Walking back over to their bed and gently plopping her down on it. 

"There. Now stay here. And p-please stay away from the windows." A black paw touched his face.

"I will. Don't worry."

He cupped her paw and mumbled. "That's when I worry the most.....SH*T!" He shot up and away startling her. "I-I'm late!" A look of familiar panic came over him as he ran away a couple steps-..Only to stop and turn back around towards her and give her a quick peck on the forehead. "S-Stay here. D-Don't answer the phone unless it's me."

"I get it, Marx. Go!"

"R-RIGHT!" He fumbled towards the doorway out of their bedroom and opened the door. "I-I love you!!"

"I love you, too!," she called out as the door slammed shut. She stared after him for a while until the faint sound of the front door of their apartment slammed shut signaling his departure and sighed before looking up at her giant wings. "Why does this always happen to us indeed."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Queeny. That's disgusting. Why are you even eating that?"

The human looking girl happily crunched something between her teeth before turning to look at him with a fanged grin.

"Hanny~," she said without even opening her mouth to talk(kinda creepy), "When Chesire gives you something he worked hard to catch, you don't just throw away his gifts.~ He knows raven's are one of my more desirable snacks.~ How sweet of him.~ He caught you a jar of moths you know."

He shivered at the memory. "That was more creepy than watching you eat that bird.....Queeny, close your mouth. I can see your fangs."

She gigged more and smiled wider stretching her human face. "I can't help but smile at family.~ I thought you liked it when we went out." She looked down. "We got you lots of goodies.~"

The bag he was currently holding was full of little knickknacks and books he had told her he was interested in. Where she even got them, he had no clue and not sure he even wanted to know. She loved to pamper her siblings at other's expence if needed.

"And they're very nice. But aren't you worried about getting caught?"

She shrugged him off. "Trust me when I say that I can do excellent illusions, Sweetheart.~ But right now, I'm eager to see what that slippery serpent has in store for me."

She giggled maniac-like as the faint building of the studios up ahead slowly grew the closer they came. Oh! This was going to be fun!~


	45. Don's Bidding

The dark room's atmosphere was not the most calm to anyone outside the Don's close circle of workers and family. But the dark brought comfort to the dangerous man. There were many things one could get away with in the dark. Many things that never left the dark. That never got questioned or solved. Maybe it was the authority he had or just the fear that came with it. But he was grateful for what the dark gave him. Now it was time to summon one of the darkest creatures that lived in it.

If only she stopped running off-

He was distracted by a knocking at the door. Quickly giving it a look over before turning to one of his surrounding people. The tall creature closest to the door opened it immediately at his silent command. The first thing that hit his little hell was a flood of light and the silhouette of the creature he had hoped to summon. 

"Good of you to finally join us. Certainly took you long enough."

The girl grinned at him before stepping into the hell she was summoned to with a couple high pitched giggles. "You know I never disappoint.~ The question is what the great Don has in store for me THIS time.~" The girl never stopped walking. Only doing so when she was near his desk. Her multicolored eyes eyeing him like he was a full coursed meal. "What will it be I wonder? A slaughter? Kidnapping? Perhaps a little warning to those you send missiles to do a man's job.~"

"So you've heard about that?"

She laughed like a maniac before snapping back in an instant. "How could I not?~ It's been quite a sight seeing all those explosions.~...How's the little lady?~"

He remained silent but the hand gripping the cigar tightened just the slightest. Enough for her to notice apparently.

"Ooooh.~ I forgot she's out cold."

"Actually-" He quickly put out the cigar on the close ash tray and stood up. "That's what I wanted you here for. I have a job for you that will test your skills."

She perked up. She loved a good challenge. Who doesn't? She watched him slowly walk towards a different door in the dark office. Looked liked a closet, but that was proven wrong when the serpent knocked twice. Without skipping a beat, the clicking of a lock rang out and the door was immediately opened by another one of his tall furballs. He turned and beckoned her towards the door before going in himself. Of course, she didn't skip a beat and made her way over to where he disappeared to. What she saw made her smile wider?

"Ooooh!~ What a sleeping beauty.~" Her gaze carefully went over the unconscious woman on the bed. Her breathing was even and besides the obvious sleeping smell, she looked like any other sleeping person. "Such a sight.~"

"I suppose you know about this 'A coma Illness' going around."

"Naturally.~"

He turned to her with tired eyes and rose a brow. "My men have gathered that it's some kind of modified roofy drug combined with a flu like vires. But it doesn't spread. Otherwise hundreds of others would've been affected. Someone ha-"

"Someone has been deliberately putting it in people one way or another." She giggled. "Really? How very very interesting.~ And what does the great Castello want me to do about it? Hmm?~ I can't hunt down someone that I don't know.~"

"I know that," he growled out through gritted fangs, "This is a test of your.....services."

Her grin finally widened enough to break her human disguise. Yellow peeking out from behind those mitch matched eyes. "I love a good challenge, Sweetheart.~" He grimaced at the nickname. "Hmhmhm. Now. What's the Don's bidding?"

"Can you erase memories? Specific memories about something?"

"Yes.~"

He rose a brow. "Erase documents? Like hospital paperwork?"

"Of course. I eat them."

His brow rose higher. "And what about...enhancing TV footage?"

Her eyes narrowed. "Dear. Electronics are my family's specialty.~ So you wish me to erase evidence of you and your wife anywhere near the hospital?~"

"Correct. And...something else." He glanced back towards the bed with a strange look in his eyes.

Queeny followed his gaze for a moment before back to him with a smile and more giggling. "You want me to wake her up.~"

"Can you?"

"My dear Don.~ While I am a very capable creature, my knowledge with medical science is close to none. But-," she said just as he was about to hiss in more frustration, "I happen to know two VERY good mad scientists and can break down the very structure of it.~''

"...Then you can make this happen?" 

"Well, I'll need a few things-"

"Name it."

"Weeeelll.~ " She held up fingers as she listed off. "A list of all the people that know and could possibly know, the original footage, and a blood sample of the little lady's blood.~ Think you can manage?"

"That would be just a FEW close employees of mine and the family doctor. Unless my son opened up." He started towards the door. "All footage of that building is currently upstairs and to be shown on public news tomorrow morning...."He have her a look." But I am rather hesitant to just give her blood to anyone-"

"Would you rather have a Sleeping Beauty or a Living Charming?" He didn't answer. "I thought so.~"

He hissed. "How soon can you have this done?"

"Give me one week. And I assure you everything will be ready."

He looked at her for a moment before nodding and turning to the door. "So be it."

"Good. Now about that list of names.~ You'll need to think very hard and be very specific.~ Wouldn't want to miss anyone.~ Hehehe."

"That begs the question of how exactly did my enemy found out she was there in the first place-"

"Oh, one of your dealer's double crossed you," she said casually with a wave, "Must've heard you discussing it. Don't worry anymore." Finally, the true demon broke out. "He was delicious either way.~"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The dragon didn't really make himself discreet when he practically rushed into his workplace trying to make up for lost time from sleeping in. Almost bumping into a few others on his way to his office. Ounce there he fumbled to get the key out of his pocket, yellow eyes looking around for anyone who'd possibly be a threat. He somehow finally managed to get the key out before shakingly unlocking the door, rushing in and slamming it behind him. He remained there for a few seconds before sighing in relief and pushing himself away from the door. There. He sucsessfully got into work and into his office before anyone could notice him-

He barely got a few steps away before there was a knocking at the door. Making him freeze...and slowly turn around back to the door. The knocking got louder before a cold voice came through.

"Mr. Marx, I suggest you open the door."

The cold voice sent a shiver down his spine and he visibly gulped. How did he not notice anyone watching him? He made a move to grab the doorknob but stopped when it turned on it's own and the door swung open-

THUD! "OW!"

Marx stumbled back when the door made contact with his forehead. He groaned and thankfully didn't fall thanks for his desk he ran into and clutched at the place that got hit. He grumbled something under his breath and opened an eyes to stare at the pale boy in the doorway. He was giving him a raised brow look.

"My father sent me to check up on that script you gave Quivor. He wants all employees on deck for the end of this month-"

"T-This month! I-I thought the premere was next month!" He slowly opened his other eye to stare at the serpent. A wide look to them.

"Well you should have been here for the weekly staff meeting instead of fonding over the wounded animal." 

Marx gave a small frown at the comment he made towards his wife, but didn't dare say anything to the son of the powerful Don and his boss. "W-What does he-?"

"He wants you on the floors helping Director with the scenes. We have less than three weeks you know." He reached down to grab the doorknob before looking back at him. " Wouldn't want to make him angry."

The door fully closed and he was left there leaning against the desk and groaned again. Another thing to add to his worries.


	46. Hell Palace Residents P2

It. Was. Weird.

Not in a bad way, but still weird. The looks she'd been getting ranged from surprised, to confused, to shocked, and even rage. Guess Helsing was right about the necklace making her untouchable. That was one thing he was truthful about at least, though the stares she got from others was starting to get weirder. But it was nice not to have to worry about anymore unwanted attention-

"Hey, Margey.~"

She thought too soon.

"*sigh* Yes, Your Highness?" She turned and met the floating face of the red headed demon. He smiled that wide grin of his and floated next to her while she walked.

"Whaddya up to?~"

She held up the basket of laundry she was currently carrying. "Your laundry. What else would I be doing except cleaning up your messes and cooking your food?"

"Oh! You're the one cleaning my room/ No wonder it's so clean. Could've sworn it was Tenta."

"Nope. It's been me for the past year."

"Oh. Sooooo- You clean my room?"

"Yes."

"And cook for me."

"Yes."

"And.." His eyes gave the basket a look over. "Other things?~"

She stopped and so did he. She looked at him with an almost blank stare before wrinkling her snout up at him with narrowed pink eyes.

"What?~"

"What do you mean 'what'? Where do you get 'other things' from?"

He shrugged and nodded to the basket she was still holding. "You know. Like what Tenta does. What did you think I mean?"

"With you? It's hard to tell." She started walking again with him floating behind her. "Especially with that tone you're using."

"You mean my normal beautiful voive?~" He pressed a hand to his chest in a fake gasp and smiled wider. "You should be grateful you get to hear it so closely.~ Not everyone is this lucky.~"

Instead of answering, she rolled her eyes and ignored him while continuing to walk towards the laundry room. The best way to get him off your back was to ignore him until he got bored and left....but she forgot one thing. Helsing could be more stubborn than given credit for. Which is why when he floated a few feet ahead of her and stopped directly in front of her, she was taken aback. When she tried going around him, he extended an arm, blocking her.

She eyes his arm before giving him a glare."Helsing, this isn't funny. I have a job to do and you're in my way."

"I totally agree. Well, except the 'in your way' part." His smile got wider. "Or are you forgetting your little favor to me?"

"No. I didn't forget. Is your friend's double date tonight?"

"Nah. Not really-"

"Then if it's not tonight then I need to do my chores." She attempted to side step around him, but was ounce again stopped by his arm blocking her. "Helsing. What do you want?"

"I need another favor from you."

Margo rose a brow at him. "And what would that be?"

"My family expects me to bring someone for the big party."

"Party?"

He shrugged. "Some big meet up with all them prissy rulers and spoiled rich people-"

"And how do I fit in? If you haven't noticed-" SHe looked at herself. "I'm not rich or fancy. I'm basically your babysitter."

"Exactly! Margo-" He held out a hand. "I want someone that won't try and suck up to me or treat me like eye candy. I mean, I look pretty good.~" She rolled her eyes when he gestured to himself. "But you at least pretend like you don't notice."

"Bullsh*t I do! I don't know which is bigger. Your head or ego," she retorted but with a smile.

"...Heh. Well, I guess it depends on what you mean by h- OOF!"

Helsing stumbled back a few steps after Margo nudged him in the gut with her basket.

"Y-You're such an a$$!"

"Correction. My a$$ is one of my best features.~"

She decided to ignore that part. "Ugh! If I say yes, will you stop with the innuendos." 

He perked up immediately. "You have my word."

"Fine. Now move so I can finally finish my job, please." He did without hesitation and she smiled before walking past him. "Thank you."

"See ya 'round, Wolfy.~"

She smiled to herself for whatever reason and continued walking. She got near the of the hallway a sudden thought made her stop. She whirled back around on her heel but Helsing was already gone by then. Did-....Did she just agree to a second date?


	47. The Slow Truth P3

"WHAT?!"

The classroom went silent and everyone turned to give the moth girl a look. Miracle slowly turned a bright green and sank further into the pink neck fluff before muttering an apology. Her friends stared at the purple demon like he had suddenly grown another head.

"Indigo." He calmly turned his attention to the jackalope who narrowed her eyes. "No offense. But are your gears too tight? We JUST told you that her dad is a demon hunter."  
His ear twitched as he cocked a brow. "I understand perfectly. And I would like to meet Miracle's parents."

Cappuccino facepalmed before sliding her hand slide down her face and looked at him. She groaned. "Have you looked in a mirror lately?"

"I understand your concern, but exactly how long do you think your family can keep me a secret from him? Don't you think it's bad enough that he could find from someone else and have a meltdown?"

"Well, what are we supposed to do? Just walk up to him and say 'Hey, Uncle Fitch!," She looked up and motioned her arms like she was talking to someone, " You know how you hate demons and kill 'em for a living? Well, Mirry has a demon boyfriend, but not only that, his parents work for the Devil himself. But please don't kill him. He's a great guy and wants to meet ya!'" Her faced snapped back to a scowl. "Yeah. You'd be dead after he hears 'demon', and that's if you aren't killed already for being the secret boyfriend he didn't know existed."

"Indy, I really hate to say this, buuuuut they have a good point. M-Mr. Hatchet was scary enough when you guys got together. Maybe it's for the best?"

"Vikki, not you too. Out of everyone-"

Tap, tap, tap!

The rapping of knuckles on wood caught everyone's attention as they all turned to the mute dragon. Ounce everyone was looking at him he pointed at Indigo before making a chapping motion.

"...Hey! That's not a bad idea!" Cappuccino lit up instantly. "We can just tell 'em you're part robot. He'll never know the difference."

He rose a brow. "So you want to lie to him?"

"It wouldn't be lying, just leaving out the demon part out so he won't freak out. We'll tell 'em you're a demon later down the road.....Much later."

Indigo still didn't look convinced as his brow rose further. "Cap. This is a terrible idea. Too many things could go wrong-"

"I-If you don't want to meet my parents-" He flinched at the sudden voice of his girlfriend. The moth slowly crept out from the pink fluff and looked up at him. "-t-then you better agree to this."

A look of utter shock came over him. "Miracle. Are you of all people suggesting er deceive your own parents like this?"

Miracle gave him a look."My parents. My rules. N-Now you agree o-or I'm putting my foot down."

The two stared at each other for a couple seconds before Indigo sighed and turned away.

"Fine. But I don't like this plan."

Miracle smiled at his reply and visibly relaxed too. They had one problem solved for now at least. Now all that was left was figuring out how to tell Fitch about his demon half-

RRRRIIIIIIINNNGG!!

She squeaked at the sudden ringing of the bell earning a chuckle from her boyfriend. Yeah. This might be a problem. Everyone shuffled and got up to go towards the door with everyone else when a shout caught her attention.

"Vikki?"

The wolf stopped and turned around towards the teacher. He was giving her a look which instantly made her ears drop and she swallowed.

"Um...Yes, Mr. Turkiose?"

"Could you stay after class for a few minutes? I want to have a word with you about something."


End file.
